YF  01687 


" 

University  of  California. 


Alexander  Del  Mar. 


Accessions  N,,.  /f 


M  B  H  A  R  i 

|  UK  I  VEKSITY   OF 

CALIFORXI/ 


R  E  1*  0  R  T 


VITAL    STATISTICS 


UNITED     STATES, 


MADE     TO     THE 


MUTUAL  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY  OF  NEW  YORK. 


BY     JAMES    WYNNE,     M.  D.; 

MEMBER  OF  THE  AMERICAN   MEDICAL   ASSOCIATION  ;    OF   THE  AMERICAN  ASSOCIATION   FOU  THE 

ADVANCEMENT  OF  SCIENCE;   CORRESPONDING  MEMBER  OF  T1IK  AMERICAN  ETHNOLOGICAL 

SOCIETY  ;  OF  TUB  NEW  YORK  LYCEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY,  *c.,  &c.,  Ac. 


NEW  YORK:    II.  BAII.LIERE,  290  Broadway. 

LONDON:    210  Regent  Street.       PARIS:    J.  I?.  BAILLISBK  KT  FILS,  Rnc  Ilantcfenillo. 
MADRID  :    C.  BAILLY  BAILLIERE,  11  Callc  del  Principe. 

1857. 

L  i  i*  R  A  U  i 

UNIVERSITY   OF 


PREFACE. 


THE  accompanying  Report  was  originally  made  to  the  Presi 
dent  and  Trustees  of  the  Mutual  Life   Insurance  Company,  of 
NCAV  York,  who,  in  the  prosecution  of  an  extended  business,  had 
long  felt  the  necessity  for  a  more  full  and  exact  knowledge  of 
Vital  Statistics  upon  which  to  base  their  operations  than  was 
attainable.     They  had,  indeed,  through  their  medical  examiners 
and  other  officials  obtained  many  valuable  statistics  from  all  parts 
of  the  Union,  which,  upon  the  selection  of  the  writer  to  make  this 
report,  were  placed  by  Mr.  WINSTON,  the  President  of  the  Com 
pany,  under  whose  auspices  they  were  collected,  in  his  hands, 
and  together  furnish  no  inconsiderable  source  of  information. 

The  statistical  records  of  the  General  and  State  Governments, 
and  the  contributions  of  many  individual  statisticians,  have  like 
wise  supplied  reliable  data,  of  whose  value  the  reader  will  have 
an  opportunity  of  determining  for  himself.  The  deductions 
drawn  either  from  admitted  or  supposed  premises,  are  so  given 


PREFACE. 


as  to  enable  a  comparison  to  be  instituted  between  the  facts  upon 
which  they  are  based,  and  the  reasoning  consequent  npon  them  ; 
and  while  all  mere  speculations  are  avoided,  it  is  hoped  that  the 
principles  developed  may  be  found  a  safe  guide  in  the  conduct  of 
a  business  which  involves  a  trust,  so  vast  in  a  pecuniary  point  of 
view,  and  so  sacred  in  its  moral  obligations,  as  that  of  Life 
Assurance. 

It  may  be  proper  to  add,  that  the  collection  of  Yital  Statis 
tics,  upon  a  comprehensive  scale,  is  a  new  subject  in  the  United 
States  ;  and  although  this  Ecport  embraces  many  points  whose 
elucidation  is  tolerably  well  defined,  yet  a  large  number  await 
the  collection  of  those  facts  which  the  General  or  State  Govern 
ments,  or  both,  must  sooner  or  later  gather  together. 

It  is  highly  gratifying  to  be  able  to  state  in  this  connection, 
that  in  addition  to  the  Company  to  whom  the  Report  was 
originally  made,  all  the  Life  Insurance  Companies  in  the  United 
States,  with  the  exception  of  six  or  eight,  have,  with  great 
unanimity  and  much  kind  feeling,  united  in  defraying  the  expenses 
of  the  present  publication.  This  is  the  more  pleasing  to  the 
writer,  inasmuch  as  it  not  only  evinces  a  desire  on  the  part  of 
those  engaged  in  this  important  and  highly  intellectual  depart 
ment  of  business  to  secure  the  aid  of  science,  but  is  at  the  same 
time  an  earnest  that,  in  their  esteem,  his  labors  are  not  devoid 
of  value. 


PREFACE. 

The  Companies  above  alluded  to  are— 

THE  NEW  YORK  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  New  York. 
UNITED  STATES  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  New  York. 
THE  MANHATTAN  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  New  York. 
KNICKERBOCKER  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  New  York. 
MUTUAL  BENEFIT  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  New  Jersey. 
PENN  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  Philadelphia. 
UNITED  STATES  LIFE  INSURANCE,  ANNUITY  AND  TRUST  COMPANY, 

of  Philadelphia. 

AMERICAN  LIFE  INSURANCE  AND  TRUST  COMPANY,  of  Philadelphia. 
MASSACHUSETTS  HOSPITAL  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  Boston. 
NEW  ENGLAND  MUTUAL  LIFE   INSURANCE  COMPANY,   of  Boston. 
UNION  MUTUAL  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,   of  Boston. 
THE  STATE  MUTUAL  LIFE  ASSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  Worcester,  Mass. 
AMERICAN  MUTUAL  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  New  Haven. 
CHARTER  OAK  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  Hartford. 
AMERICAN  TEMPERANCE  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  Hartford. 
CONNECTICUT  MUTUAL  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  Hartford. 
INTERNATIONAL  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY,  of  London. 
LIVERPOOL  AND  LONDON  LIFE  INSURANCE  COMPANY. 


1.  1  i»  it  .v  ;»  i 
u  N  i  v  K  u  s  i  rr  v  c  >  F 

CALIFORNIA. 

^ — . # 


VITAL     STATISTICS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS. 

By  a  wise  provision  of  Providence,  the  period  of  death  in  any  indivi 
dual  instance  during  a  state  of  health,  is  always  a  subject  of  extreme 
uncertainty,  and  it  consequently  happens  that,  although  human  life  has  an 
expectation  of  continuance  proportioned  to  its  past  duration,  and  the 
collateral  circumstances  by  which  it  is  surrounded,  yet  the  span  of  its 
existence  is  liable  to  be  severed  at  any  one  moment  of  its  being. 

Were  the  circumstances  affecting  its  duration  always  the  same,  the 
period  of  life  in  any  particular  case  might  be  defined  with  much  certainty ; 
but  as  these  are  found  to  be  ever  varying,  so  the  expectation  insepar 
ably  interwoven  with  them,  becomes  a  question  whose  solution  depends 
in  a  great  degree  upon  the  doctrine  of  probability. 

It  is  impossible  to  determine  whether  any  coming  event  will  happen  or 
not.  Yet  it  is  possible  to  conjecture  the  number  of  cases  in  which  it  may 
occur,  and  of  these,  the  number  in  which  its  occurrence  is  probable.  Ma 
thematically  speaking  the  probability  of  an  event,  is  the  ratio  of  the  favor 
able  circumstances  likely  to  occur  in  its  regard,  and  the  proportion  of  those 
in  which  it  is  likely  to  happen  to  those  in  which  it  is  not ;  thus,  the  proba 
bility  of  throwing  an  ace  with  dice,  is  one  in  six.  And  again  ;  when  two 
dice  are  thrown,  the  probability  of  any  given  number  being  uppermost,  as 


10  INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS. 

seven  is  likewise  one  ih  six ;  because,  every  one  of  the  six  numbers  on  one 
of  the  dice  may  combine  with  one  of  the  six  on  the  other  so  as  to  form  the 
number  seven ;  now,  as  the  number  of  combinations  is  thirty -six,  and  there 
are  six  ways  in  which  seven  may  occur,  its  chances  of  occurrence  are  six  in 
thirty-six  times,  or  one  chance  in  six. 

The  value  of  the  information  thus  obtained  is  far  from  being  lessened 
because  of  its  dependence  upon  what  at  first  sight  appears  to  be  vague 
and  uncertain.  How  much  the  acquired  knowledge  possessed  by  mankind 
is  exclusively  due  to  this  source,  may  not  at  first  view  be  imagined. 
Upon  it  are  based  the  actions  and  judgments  which  constitute  the  affairs 
of  every  day  life — confidence  in  the  succession  of  future  events,  and  in 
part,  at  least,  the  almost  miraculous  power,  by  which  the  astronomer, 
following  with  his  calculations  the  flight  of  the  comet,  long  after  it  has 
disappeared  from  the  field  of  his  telescope — predicts  the  time  of  its 
re-appearance  after  a  fixed  and  stated  interval. 

But  the  problems  of  the  mathematician  used  in  these  determinations  are 
the  mere  instruments,  delicate  and  polished  though  they  may  be,  by  which 
these  questions  are  determined.  The  materials  from  which  he  fashions 
his  work,  are  furnished  by  those  statistical  records  of  the  movements 
of  population — which  enlightened  governments  have  found  it  to  their 
interest  to  collect  and  preserve ;  and  here  the  researches  of  medicine 
become  so  intimately  blended  with  those  of  mathematics,  that  their 
division  is  next  to  impossible,  and  seems  to  require  that  the  prosecutor 
of  the  one  should  also  be  a  proficient  in  the  other. 

The  practice  of  registering  births  and  deaths,  is  of  extremely  antique 
origin.  We  are  possessed  of  sufficient  information  in  relation  to  the  habits 
of  the  early  inhabitants  of  Asia  and  Africa,  to  enable  us  to  speak  positively 
in  regard  to  the  fact  that,  among  the  more  influential  and  polished  nations 
of  these  countries,  registers  of  this  kind  were  kept.  The  practice  was 


INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS.  11 

continued  by  the  Greeks  and  the  Romans,  but  the  records  which  contained 
the  enumerations  like  those  of  the  nations  that  preceded  them,  have  unfor 
tunately  been  destroyed ;  and  their  previous  existence  is  only  revealed  by 
collateral  testimony. 

The  earliest  continuous  register  of  births,  deaths,  and  marriages  now 
extant,  is  that  kept  by  the  city  of  Geneva,  in  Switzerland,  which  dates 
back  to  1549,  and  has  been  continued  from  that  time  to  the  present,  with 
great  care  and  accuracy.  This  city,  which  has  attained  to  a  high  degree  of 
refinement,  furnishes  in  the  improvement  in  the  progression  of  its  popula 
tion  and  increased  duration  of  life,  a  striking  evidence  in  favor  of  the 
benefits  of  the  adoption  of  this  system. 

I  have  before  me  (remarks  Mr.  Shattuck)  the  results  of  an  examination  made  by 
Edward  Mallet,  a  very  able  work,  published  in  the  "  Annales  D'llygiene."  From 
this  work  it  appears  that  human  life  has  wonderfully  improved  since  these  registers 
were  kept.  The  number  of  years  which  it  was  probable  that  every  individual  born 
would  live,  appears  in  the  different  periods  as  follows : — 

Period.  Years.        Months.        Days.    Rate,  of  Increase. 

1550  to  1GOO 8  1  26  100 

1600  to  1700 13  3  16  153 

1701  to  1750  27  9  13  321 

1751  to  1800  31  3  5  361 

1801  to  1813  40  8  10  470 

1814tol833 45  0  29  521 

Showing  that  the  mean  duration  of  life  has  increased  more  than  five  times  during 
these  periods ! 

The  progression  of  the  population  and  increased  duration  of  life  has  been 
attended  by  a  progression  in  happiness.  As  prosperity  advanced,  marriages  became 
fewer  and  later.  The  proportion  of  births  was  reduced,  but  a  greater  number 
of  the  infants  born  were  preserved,  and  the  proportion  of  the  population  in 
manhood  became  greater.  In  the  early  ag"es,  the  excessive  mortality  was  accom 
panied  by  an  excessive  fecundity.  In  the  last  ten  years  of  the  17th  century,  a 


12  INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS. 

marriage  still  produced  more  than  five  children ;  the  probable  duration  of  life 
attained  was  not  20  years.  Towards  the  end  of  the  18th  century,  there  were  scarcely 
three  children  to  a  marriage,  and  the  probabilities  exceeded  32  years.  At  the 
present  time  a  marriage  only  produces  2f  children,  and  the  probability  of  life  is 
45  years. 

Geneva  has  arrived  at  a  high  state  of  civilization.  The  real  productive  power 
of  the  population  has  increased  in  a  much  greater  proportion  than  the  increase  in 
its  .actual  number.  The  absolute  number  of  the  population  has  only  doubled 
during  three  centuries ;  but  the  value  of  the  population — the  productive  powers — 
has  more  than  doubled  upon  the  mere  numerical  increase.  In  other  words,  a 
population  of  27,000,  in  which  the  probability  of  life  is  40  years  for  each  individual, 
is  more  than  twice  as  strong  for  the  purposes  of  production,  as  a  population  of 
27,000,  in  which  the  probability  or  value  of  life  was  only  20  years  for  each  indi 
vidual. 

This  wonderful  improvement  is  attributed,  among  other  things,  by  M.  Mallet, 
to  the  information  obtained,  rendering  the  science  of  public  health  better  known 
and  understood ;  to  larger,  better  and  cleaner  dwellings ;  to  more  abundant  and 
more  healthy  food ;  and  to  a  better  regulated  public  and  private  life.  He  cites  an 
instance  of  the  effects  of  regimen  in  the  preservation  of  life,  where  86  orphans  had 
been  reared  in  one  establishment  in  24  years,  and  one  only  of  whom  had  died. 
They  were  taken  from  the  poor,  among  whom  the  average  mortality  was  six  times  as 
great. 

Most  of  the  countries  of  Europe  have  systems  of  registration,  more  or 
less  perfect ;  the  oldest  of  which,  however,  do  not  extend  back  to  a  period 
beyond  eighty  years.  That  of  England,  which  has  been  productive  of 
more  important  results  than  any  other,  dates  from  1838,  and  is,  conse 
quently,  of  less  than  twenty  years'  duration. 

In  the  United  States,  although  some  laws  were  enacted  in  the  New 
England  States  at  an  early  period,  yet  no  decisive  action  was  taken  until 
1842,  when  Massachusetts,  adopting  in  a  great  degree  the  plan  of  the 
English  Registration  Act,  had  the  honor  to  furnish  the  nucleus,  around 
which  the  registration  system,  so  far  as  it  has  been  adopted,  has  gathered. 
An  Act  for  registration  was  enacted  in  New  York,  in  1847  ;  in  New  Jersey 


INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS.  13 

and  Connecticut,  in  1848  ;  in  New  Hampshire,  in  1849  ;  in  Rhode  Island, 
in  1850;  in  Pennsylvania,  Virginia  and  Kentucky,  in  1851;  and  in  South 
Carolina,  in  1853.  The  results  of  these  various  Acts,  so  far  as  they  have 
been  made  public,  are  to  be  found  in  the  Annual  Registration  Reports  of 
Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Rhode  Island, 
Kentucky  and  Virginia.  Some  of  these  reports,  and  particularly  those 
of  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  are  prepared  with  much  ability,  and  con 
stitute  valuable  contributions  to  vital  statistics.  Others,  as  those  of 
Connecticut,  are  meagre,  and  less  reliable. 

The  wide  difference  manifest  in  the  general  character  and  value  of 
the  reports  already  made,  clearly  establishes  the  fact  that  the  United  States 
never  can  possess  a  system  of  registration  which  will  correspond  in  uni 
formity  and  value  with  those  of  the  Governments  of  Europe,  until  the 
task  and  responsibility  of  executing  it  be  confided  to  the  General 
Government. 

What  value  is  attached  to  this  information  by  the  enlightened  states 
men  of  other  countries,  may  be  deduced  from  the  following  remarks  made 
by  the  Registrar-General  of  England  : — "  The  census  has  been  taken  decen 
nially  with  great  regularity  in  the  United  States  of  America ;  and  the  ages 
are  properly  distinguished,  but  abstracts  of  the  registers  of  deaths  have 
only  been  published  by  the  cities  of  New  York,  Philadelphia,  Boston,  and 
some  of  the  more  advanced  towns  where  property  has  accumulated ;  and 
life  is  watched  over  with  more  care  and  facility  than  in  the  back  settle 
ments — scantily  peopled  with  a  fluctuating  population.  No  correct  life- 
table  can,  therefore,  be  formed  for  the  population  of  America  until  they 
adopt,  in  addition  to  the  census,  the  system  of  registration  which  exists  in 
European  States." 

"  Since  an  English  life-table  has  now  been  framed  from  the  necessary 
data,  I  venture  to  express  a  hope,  that  the  facts  may  be  collected  and 


14  INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS. 

abstracted,  from  which  life-tables  for  other  countries  can  be  constructed. 
A  comparison  of  the  duration  of  successive  generations  in  England,  France, 
Prussia,  Austria,  Russia,  America,  and  other  states,  would  throw  much 
light  on  the  physicial  condition  of  the  respective  populations,  and  suggest 
to  scientific  and  benevolent  individuals  in  every  country — and  to  govern 
ments — many  ways  of  diminishing  the  sufferings,  and  ameliorating  the 
health  and  condition  of  the  people ;  for  the  longer  life  of  a  nation  denotes 
more  than  it  does  in  an  individual — a  happier  life — a  life  more  exempt 
from  sickness  and  infirmity — a  life  of  greater  energy  and  industry — of 
greater  experience  and  wisdom.  By  these  comparisons  a  noble  national 
emulation  might  be  excited ;  and  rival  nations  would  read  of  sickness 
diminished,  deformity  banished,  life  saved — of  victories  over  death  and  the 
grave,  with  as  much  enthusiasm  as  of  victories  over  each  other's  armies  in 
the  field  ;  and  the  triumph  of  one  would  not  be  the  humiliation  of  the  other, 
for  in  this  contention  none  could  lose  territory,  or  honor,  or  blood,  but  all 
would  gain  strength."* 

In  addition  to  the  information  collected  under  the  Registration  Laws, 
are  the  bills  of  mortality  kept  by  most  of  the  populous  towns  in  the  United 
States.  This  latter  source  of  information  is,  at  the  present  moment,  so  far 
as  it  goes,  the  most  reliable ;  and  were  it  on  a  sufficiently  extended  scale, 
might  supersede  the  aecessity  for  registration,  as  it  obtains  under  the 
present  State  enactments  ;  but  it  could  never  equal  in  exactness  and  value 
such  a  system  as  is  in  use  in  England,  were  it  extended  to  the  whole 
country,  and  placed  under  the  control  and  management  of  the  General 
Government. 

The  census  mortality  returns,  although  far  short  of  what  could  be 
desired,  clearly  show  the  ability  of  the  government,  under  a  proper  regulated 

*  Fifth  Annual  Report  Register-General  of  England,  p.  19. 


INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS.  15 

system,  to  collect  and  arrange  mortuary  registers,  which  shall  equal  in 
exactness  and  value,  those  of  any  country  in  Europe.  In  order  to  accom 
plish  this,  or  even  to  give  the  ordinary  census  returns  an  approximation  to 
correctness,  it  is  necessary  that  the  office  work  be  executed  by  those  who, 
from  peculiar  adaptation  and  long  experience,  possess  an  especial  fitness 
for  the  undertaking. 

"  Unless  there  is  machinery  in  advance  at  the  seat  of  Government,  no  census 
can  ever  be  properly  taken  and  published.  There  is  a  peculiar  education  required 
for  these  labors  which  neither  comes  from  zeal  or  genius,  but  is  the  result  only  of 
experience.  They  are  the  most  irksome  and  trying  imaginable,  requiring  inex 
haustible  patience  and  endurance,  and  baffling  almost  every  effort  after  accuracy. 
Long  familiarity  can  alone  secure  system,  economy,  and  certainty  of  result.  This 
office  machinery  exists  in  all  European  countries  where  statistics  are  the  most  reliable, 
but  there  has  been  none  of  it  in  the  United  States.  Each  census  has  taken  care  of 
itself.  Every  ten  years  some  one  at  Washington  will  enter  the  hall  of  a  department, 
appoint  fifty  or  a  hundred  persons  under  him,  who,  perhaps,  have  never  compiled 
a  table  before,  and  are  incapable  of  combining  a  column  of  figures  correctly.  Hun 
dreds  of  thousands  of  pages  of  returns  are  placed  in  the  hands  of  such  persons  to 
be  digested.  If  any  are  qualified,  it  is  no  merit  of  the  system.  In  1840,  returns 
were  given  out  by  the  job  to  whoever  would  take  them.  In  1850,  such  was  the 
pressure  of  work,  that  almost  any  one  could  at  times  have  had  a  desk.  Contrast 
this  with  the  English  system,  and  reflect  that  one  individual  presided  over  the  census 
of  1801,  '11,  '21  and  '31.  In  Washington,  as  soon  as  an  office  acquires  familiarity 
with  statistics,  and  is  educated  to  accuracy  and  activity,  it  is  disbanded,  and  even 
the  best  qualified  employee  is  suffered  to  depart.  The  government  may  rely  upon 
paying  heavily  for  the  experience  which  is  being  acquired.  Even  the  head  of  the 
office,  whatever  his  previous  training,  must  expect,  if  faithful,  to  learn  daily  ;  and  it 
is  not  going  too  far  to  say  that  a  matter  of  one  or  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  is 
the  difference  between  the  amount  which  a  census  would  cost,  conducted  by  an 
office  which  has  had  the  experience  of  a  previous  one,  (even  if  partly  or  entirely  in 
new  hands,  which  might  often  be  desirable,  since  the  machinery,  as  in  other  offices, 
would  be  kept  up,)  and  an  office  without  such  experience.  This  can  be  demon 
strated  if  required.  Half  of  that  amount  would  sustain  an  office  of  several  persons 
from  census  to  census,  and  defray  all  of  the  expenses  of  an  annual  or  biennial  report 


16  INTRODUCTORY   REMARKS, 

after  the  closing  of  the  regular  one,  which  itself  would  be  executed  with  despatch, 
with  greatly  less  force,  and  with  a  more  economical  and  wiser  application  of  labor, 
The  permanent  force  would  have  no  other  interest  than  the  prompt  execution  of  the 
work." 

In  regard  to  the  confidence  to  be  reposed  in  the  present  mortality 
returns,  the  report  makes  the  following  candid  statement  :— 

"  The  federal  census  of  1850  furnishes  the  first  instance  of  an  attempt  to  obtain 
the  mortality  during  one  year  in  all  the  States  of  the  Union,  and  had  there  been  as 
much  care  observed  in  the  execution  of  the  law  as  was  taken  in  framing  it,  and 
in  the  preparation  of  necessary  blanks,  a  mass  of  information  must  have  resulted 
relating  to  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  country,  attained  as  yet  in  no  other  part  of 
the  world.  This,  however,  would  have  been  expecting  too  much.  It  was  to  take 
for  granted,  first,  that  the  person  interrogated  in  each  family,  whoever  he  might  be, 
with  regard  to  its  affairs,  would  be  able  to  recollect  whatever  death  had  occurred  in 
it  within  the  period  of  twelve  months ;  and,  second,  to  give  the  true  designation  of 
the  cause  of  such  death.  One  would  think  it  not  unreasonable  that  the  facts  of 
actual  deaths  would  be  striking  and  impressive  enough  in  every  lurasehold  to  be 
remembered  for  a  much  longer  period  than  a  single  year ;  yet  the  returns  of  the 
marshals  have  only  to  be  examined  with  care,  and  deductions  made  from  them,  to 
satisfy  the  most  careful  observer  that  in  the  Union  at  large  at  least  one-fourth  of 
the  whole  number  of  deaths  have  not  been  reported  at  all.  Making  allowance  for 
even  this  error,  the  United  States  would  appear  to  be  one  of  the  healthiest  countries 
of  which  there  is  any  record.  The  varying  ratios  between  the  States,  as  drawn 
from  the  returns,  show  not  so  much  in  favor  of  or  against  the  health  of  either,  as 
they  do,  in  all  probability,  a  more  or  less  perfect  report  of  the  marshals.  Thus  it  is 
impossible  to  believe  Mississippi  a  healthier  State 'than  Rhode  Island,  etc.  For 
rural  population  the  returns  are  no  doubt  nearer  correct  than  they  are  for  urban, 
and  the  old  States  are  in  general  better  reported  than  the  new.  So  far  as  the 
educated  are  in  question,  the  assigned  causes  of  death  on  the  returns,  may  be  con 
sidered  sufficiently  near  the  truth  for  popular  purposes,  though  falling  far  short  of 
the  precision  necessary  in  skillful  scientific  calculations ;  but  among  the  large  mass 
of  the  community,  vagueness  and  inaccuracy  may  naturally  be  expected,  even  where 
the  parties  are  disposed  to  speak  the  truth  and  make  the  best  effort  to  do  so.  The 
physician's  certificate  of  the  cause  of  death  is  the  only  positively  reliable  evidence 
of  the  fact. 


INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS.  17 

"  The  otlier  points  and  particulars  of  inquiry,  such  as  the  age,  sex,  color,  con 
dition,  occupation  and  nativities  of  parties,  the  season  of  decease  and  duration  of 
sickness,  stand  upon  somewhat  different  ground,  and  are,  from  their  character,  no 
doubt  as  correctly  answered  as  the  inquiries  of  the  census  relating  to  the  ages,  pur 
suits,  etc.,  of  the  living. 

"  Upon  the  whole,  then,  and  we  cannot  be  too  emphatic  on  this  point,  whilst 
this  publication  of  the  mortality  statistics  of  the  census  is  disclaimed  as  of  authority 
in  showing  the  respective  pretentious  to  healthfulness  or  the  degree  of  unhealthful- 
ness  of  the  several  States,  or  of  very  great  scientific  worth  in  showing  the  specific 
causes  of  death,  it  may  be  considered  of  much  value,  notwithstanding,  in  giving 
with  even  ordinary  claims  to  precision  very  minute  phenomena  relating  to  the  deaths 
of  about  one-third  of  a  million  of  people  scattered  over  three  millions  of  square  miles 
of  territory.  The  value  of  such  a  nmltitude  of  facts  cannot  but  be  very  great,  even 
although  they  do  not  constitute  the  whole  of  them.  We  are  every  day  accustomed 
to  draw7  deductions  for  the  whole  from  a  part,  and  to  argue  out  the  true  and  com 
plete  from  the  approximate  and  uncertain. 

"  It  may  also  be  said  in  favor  of  the  returns  as  published,  that  they  constitute 
but  a  beginning,  and  are  not,  perhaps,  further  from  the  truth  than  were  the  first 
attempts  in  States  having  registration  systems.  The  same  improvement  as  in  these 
States  may  be  expected  hereafter.  The  publication  of  this  volume  will  stimulate 
investigation  and  lead  to  a  better  understanding  of  the  importance  of  the  subject." 


L  I    I.    ii    A    i,     .' 
UN  1  V  KUSITY    OF 

CALIFORNIA. 


18  TERRITORIAL   LIMITS. 


CHAPTER  II. 

TERRITORIAL    LIMITS. 

The  territory  embraced  within  the  present  limits  of  the  United  States 
extends  from  N.  latitude  29°  to  49°,  and  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific 
Oceans.  This  vast  area  contains  two  millions,  nine  hundred  and  thirty-six 
thousand,  one  hundred  and  sixty-six  square  miles,  and  embraces  a  more 
extended  range  of  soil  and  climate  than  that  of  any  other  civilized  country 
upon  the  globe.  The  opportunity  afforded  for  marking  the  effects  of  dif 
ference  of  climate,  temperature,  soil  and  social  institutions,  upon  the  same 
people,  is  without  a  parallel,  and  were  the  statistical  data  as  exact  and  reli 
able  as  those  of  the  smaller  States  of  Europe,  the  information  would  exceed 
in  comprehensivness  and  value,  that  of  any  other  country,  because  more 
extensive  and  general  in  its  range,  and  involving  questions  of  migration  and 
the  intermingling  of  races  on  a  scale  unknown  elsewhere. 

The  Alleghany  and  Rocky  Mountain  ranges  divide  the  face  of  the 
country  into  the  Atlantic  plain  and  slope,  which  is  washed  by  the  Atlantic 
Ocean,  and  was  the  earliest  settled  portion  of  the  United  States,  the  valley 
of  the  Mississippi  lying  between  the  Alleghany  and  Rocky  Mountain  ranges, 
watered  by  the  Mississippi  river  and  its  tributaries,  and  the  Pacific  slope, 
extending  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  shores  of  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
and  embracing  the  auriferous  region  of  California. 


GEOGRAPHICAL    DIVISIONS. 


19 


The  annexed  table  gives  the  area  of  each  great  division  and  ratio  to 
the  total  area  of  the  United  States  : 


Territory. 

,     Ratio  of  area  of 
Area  in  wj.     each  e,opc  „,  ,„. 

t»l  area  of  D.  8. 

Pacific  slope  

766,002                   26.09 

Atlantic  slope  proper  ... 

514416 

17.52 

Northern  Lake  region  

112,649 

3.83 

Gulf  region  

325,537 

11.09- 

Atlantic,  Lake  and  Gulf  east  and  west  of  the  Mississippi  

952,602                   32.44 

Mississippi  valley,  drained  bv  the  Mississippi  and  its  tributaries  .... 

1,217,562                  41.47 

Atlantic,  including  Northern  Lake  

627,065 

21.35 

Mississippi  valley  and  Gulf  or  Middle  region  

1,543,099 

62.56 

Total  

2  936  166 

This  is  divided  info  States  and  Territories,  as  follows :— 


State  or  Territory. 

Area  in  sq. 
milea. 

Per  cent,  of 
total  area. 

**t  • 

lilt 
*|j 

State  or  Territory. 

i 

£  S 
if 

•< 

Per  cent,  of 
total  area. 

"5^'C  . 
a  -°  >. 

SltS 

M  j|Ji 

tn  " 

50,722 
52,198 
155,980 
60 
4,674 
2,120 
69,268 
58,01)0 
55,406 
33,809 

71,127 
60,914 
114,798 
37,680 
41,265 
31,766 
11,124 
7,800 
56,243 
166,d25 
47,156 

1.73 
1.78 
6.32 

20 
18 

So 
87 
38 
13 
14 
16 
29 

10 
19 
9 
28 
26 
30 
32 
36 
15 
6 
22 

67,880 
335,882 
9,280 
207,007 
47,000 
8,320 
60,704 
39,964 
185,030 
46,000 
1,306 
29,385 
45,600 
237,504 
269,170 
61,352 
10,212 
128,022 
53,924 

2.29 
11.44 
0.32 
7.05 
1.60 
0.28 
1.73 
1.36 
6.30 
1.67 
0.04 
1.01 
1.55 
8.09 
9.17 
2.10 
0.85 
4.19 
1.84 

11 
1 
34 
4 
23 
35 
21 
27 
5 
24 
39 
31 
25 
3 
2 
12 
83 
8 
17 

Nebraska  Territory  .  . 
New  Hampshire  
New  Mexico  Territory 

California  

Columbia,  District  of.  , 
Connecticut  

0.15 
0.07 
2.02 
1.98 
1.89 
1.15 

2.42 
1.73 
8.91 
1.28 
1.40 
1.08 
0.38 
0.26 
1.91 
6.65 
1.61 

Delaware  

Florida  

Ohio 

Illinois  

Oregon  Territory.  .  .  . 

Indian  Territory  (south 

South  Carolina  

Texas            

Utah  Territory 

Louisiana  

Maine  

Washington  Territory 

Massachusetts 

Total  

Minnesota  Territory.  .  . 
Mississippi  .  , 

2,936,166 

The  interior  valley  of  North  America  begins  within  the  tropics  and 
terminates  with  the  polar  circle,  traversing  the  continent  from  south  to 
north.  Dr.  Drake  says :  "  Of  the  area  of  this  great  inter-mountain  region 


20  DISTRIBUTION    AND 

it  is  not  easy  to  speak  with  any  precision.  This  valley  cannot  be  estimated 
at  less  than  three-fourths  of  the  continental  surface.  Its  northern  half  is, 
however,  rendered  nearly  uninhabitable,  by  the  state  of  its  surface  and 
climate ;  and,  therefore,  the  portion  which  presents  objects  of  immediate 
interest  to  the  medical  etiologist,  does  not  exceed  three  millions  of  square 
miles,  of  which  as  yet  not  more  than  one-third  has  acquired  even  a  sparse 
population." 

The  Rocky  Mountains,  which  constitute  the  western  boundary  of  the 
great  valley,  arc  a  continuation  of  the  Cordilleras  of  Mexico  ;  and  acquire 
an  elevation  in  some  places  of  fourteen  thousand  feet.  The  physician  who 
would  understand  the  true  character  of  the  climate  of  the  interior  valley 
from  south  to  north,  cannot  too  strongly  fix  his  attention  on  this  lengthened 
and  elevated  chain  which  effectually  cuts  it  off'  from  the  genial  influences  of 
the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  bestows  upon  it  the  characteristics  of  an  inland  and 
peculiar  climate,  differing  altogether  from  any  to  be  found  on  the  western 
portion  of  the  European  continent. 

The  entire  population,  according  to  the  census  of  1850,  was  23,191,876. 
The  estimated  population  for  each  succeeding  year  to  18GO,  is  as  follows:— 

Years.  Aggregate. 

1851,  23,873,717 

1852,  24,575,604 

1853,  25,298,126 

1854,  26,041,890 

1855,  26,807,521 

1856,  27,595,662 

1857,  28,406,974 

1858,  29,242,139 

1859,  30,101,857 

1860,  30,986,851 


AGES    OF    POPULATION. 


21 


The  distribution  of  the  population  of  1850,  among  the  States  and  Ter 
ritories,  according  to  their  respective  ages,  is  given  in  the  annexed  table : — 


SliTES  AXD  TERRITORIES.          Dnder  1 
year. 

1  and  un 
der  5. 

5  and  un 
der  10. 

10  and  un-  20  and  un 
der  20.         der  50. 

TX)  and  un 
der  SO. 

SO  and  un 
der  100. 

^al"1"   "ok- 

110,668     119,389 
31,514       33,4811 
1,628          2,300 
5,428         6,731 
32,808       39,190 
10,899       13,071 
12371       lasso 

193,820 
53,375 
7,510 
11,725 
77,486 
21,842 
19,846 
230,552 
206,790 
246,201. 
45,476 
243,745 
105,1198 
138,768 
134,124 
203,765 
92,449 
147,564 
167,881 
70,095 
110,473 
675,98(1 
214,097 
475,981 
524,540 
30,402 
161,524 
26(1,517 
50,657 
70,494 
344,407 
62,801 
1,030 
14,048 
2,652 
2,707 

273,717 
74,255 
77,587 
21,435 
159,097 
34,690 
33,041 
312,440 
316,67(1 
345,431 
70,303 
346,618 
238,019 
223,081 
229,349 
451,194 
155,196 
221,976 
252,760 
129,446 
194,149 
1,326,860 
300,568 
734,741 
903,085 
65,725 
238,845 
339,180 
81,172 
123,512 
509,714 
128,097 
3,136 
24,246 
6,014 
4,448 

61,328 
10,328 
2,795 
4,808 
51,083 
8,076 
6,247 
62,955 
53,309 
69,11(15 
'10,884 
72,377 
34,058 
66,471 
52,995 
115,1127 
29,633 
35,244 
38,776 
47,671 
60,147 
298,462 
76,179 
161,589 
210,814 
17,148 
57,837 
71,224 
10,903 
41,605 
130,825 
2(1,322 
264 
5,138 
597 
676 

2,063 
248 
31 
216 
3,212 
333 
243 
3,142 
1,076 
1,988 
190 
3,482 
1,196 
3,787 
2,504 
6,433 
627 
1,232 
973 
3,473 
2,441 
13,256 
4,337 
5,722 
8,474 
943 
3,020 
3,548 
270 
2,659 
7,210 
326 
7 
406 
. 
4 

lCS 
24 

100 
31 
673 
18 
260 
.'..- 
45 
243 
795 
334 
54 
205 
323 
820 
18 
1,234 
123 
954 
155 
62 
175 
1,713 
150 
626 
1,175 
17 
2,673 
224 
214 
38 
385 
192 

Arkansas  6  64'' 

California  273 

Columbia,  District  of.  ...         1,319 
Connecticut   7646 

7 
In 
9 
36 
221 
18 
32 
1 
157 
176 
13 
131 
19 
9 
140 
45 
12 
25 
88 
249 
58 
75 
3 
206 
148 
89 
10 
389 
2 

Delaware  '2  554 

Florida  2,236 

Georgia  ''4858 

129,939 
115,479 
135,416 
'28,191 
133,919 
61,202 
61,781 
69,162 
90,853 
49,143 
88,975 
93,1147 
26,952 
64,828 
327,093 
117,384 
253,442 
281,066 
14,106 
91,417 
14(1,117 
30,594 
31,055 
184,163 
4(1,948 
751 
7,566 
1,778 
1,744 

141,835 
130,622 
167,714 
31,016 
151,829 
65,458 
74,453 
78,269 
102,797 
59,576 
94,355 
105,176 
33,264 
63,761 
377,6(15 
131,341 
291,286 
318,226 
15,591 
97,184 
157,6(18 
32,549 
38,153 
208,26(1 
42,279 
721 
8,727 
1,873 
1,369 

Indiana  j      32296 

Iowa  1        6  Olt 

Kentucky  '      30i>73 

Louisiana  1°  23'* 

Maine  ',      13  <ui5 

Maryland  1648" 

Massachusetts  "3  IM*> 

Michigan    10  8<I8 

Mississippi..                            10  1186 

Missouri  23,231 

New  Hampshire.         .,           6111 

New  Jersey  13556 

New  York  76,337 
North  Carolina  ''4734 

Ohio  66  884 

Pennsylvania  64,331 
liliodc  Island  3610 

South  Carolina  15801 

Tennessee  .  ,         30  151 

Texas   j        6194 

Vermont  6594 

Virginia  36  3<i8 

Wisconsin  ;      10424 

^        f  Minnesota.  168 

.-?  »   I  New  Mexico  1,233 
£  'C  1  Oregon  310 

40 

143 
65 

H        [Utah  432 

v- 

Tot«l  629,446 

2,868,827  i3,241,268|5.420,421 

•V.M  '.'.:•.'•; 

l,976,7oo 

89.077       2,655       14,285 

By  a  calculation  of  the  ratios  of  each  age,  as  given  in  the  above  table, 
the  following  results  are  obtained  : 


Age. 

Number. 

Ratio. 

Age. 

Number. 

Ratio. 

Under  1  year  old  

629,446 

2.71 

80  and  under  100  

89,077 

.39 

")  gf,8  :f»7 

1"  37 

2  565 

111 

5         "         20  

8,661,689 

:.    :(.-) 

14,285 

.1  16 

"(I          "         60 

8  t4l  797 

fid         "         80  

l,»76,7oo 

-      ' 

Aggregate  population  

:.!••:  S7H 

100.00 

22  CHARACTERISTICS   OF    INHABITANTS. 

This  population  is  composed  of  the  inhabitants  who  assisted  in  the  for 
mation  of  the  government  in  1789,  and  their  descendants — of  those  who 
have  since  emigrated,  together  with  their  offspring,  and  of  those  who 
were  admitted  into  the  Union,  when  the  territory  which  they  inhabited  was 
annexed,  as  in  the  case  of  Florida,  Louisiana,  New  Mexico,  and  California. 
The  number  from  this  latter  source  was  at  the  time  of  the  several  admissions 
comparatively  insignificant ;  that  from  Louisiana  being  77,000  ;  from  Flo 
rida,  10,000  ;  and  from  New  Mexico  and  California,  60,000.  The  increase 
from  this  source,  by  propagation,  however,  has  been  such  as  to  constitute  a 
very  considerable  item  in  the  present  population  returns.  One  remarkable 
feature  attending  the  admission  of  the  inhabitants  of  Louisiana  and  of  the 
French  west  of  the  Mississippi  by  the  extension  of  the  western  boundary 
of  the  Union,  has  been  the  large  number  of  intermarriages  between  the 
French  population,  and  those  descended  from  an  English  ancestry,  born  in 
the  Atlantic  States. 

These  geographical  divisions  into  sea-coast,  mountain,  and  inland- 
valley  regions,  exercise  a  considerable  influence  over  the  progress  of  popu 
lation,  but  much  less  than  those  of  high  and  low  latitudes  and  the  differences 
in  social  position  which  obtain  in  the  different  States  of  the  Union. 

In  estimating  the  movements  of  population  in  this  country,  the  con 
federate  character  of  the  government  must  never  be  lost  sight  of.  The 
power  reserved  by  each  State  to  enact  its  own  laws,  has  given  to  each  part 
of  the  Union  an  individuality  which  is  marked  and  important.  The  social 
influences  surrounding  the  inhabitants  of  two  neighboring  States,  as  Massa 
chusetts  and  Connecticut,  or  Virginia  and  Maryland,  may  not  be  very  dif 
ferent,  but  they  are  widely  so  between  remote  parts  of  the  Union. 

The  stern  and  rigid  habits  of  the  New  England  Puritans — the  substan 
tial  and  frugal  customs  of  the  Hollanders  who  colonized  New  York — the 
careful  thrift  of  the  Quakers  of  Pennsylvania — the  generous  and  hospitable 


PROBABLE    FUTURE    INCREASE.  23 

character  of  the  early  settlers  of  Maryland — and  the  careless  and  noble  traits 
of  the  gay  cavaliers  who  settled  Virginia,  are  still  manifest  among  their 
descendants,  modifying  their  character  and  affecting,  in  a  very  decided 
manner,  the  population  of  their  respective  States. 

These  observations  apply  more  especially  to  the  States  which  skirt  the 
Atlantic,  yet  they  are  not  without  force  in  those  in  the  great  valley  of  the 
Mississippi.  The  migration  from  State  to  State  has  had  some  influence  on 
the  population  of  every  State,  and  in  some  instances,  as  that  of  New  York, 
has  effected  so  decided  a  change,  as  greatly  to  modify  their  early  charac 
teristics. 

"  Some  reflections  upon  the  future  growth  of  the  population  of  the 
Union,  will  not  be  improper  in  this  place.  The  facts  embraced  in  the 
census  show  a  regular  diminution  in  the  ratio  of  total  as  well  as  of  natural 
increase  from  decade  to  decade,  up  to  1840,  making  corrections  for  the 
admission  of  new  territory,  and  the  shorter  period  than  ten  years  included 
between  the  census  of  1820  and  1830.  From  the  declining  per  cent,  of 
females  and  young  children,  Professor  Tucker  argues  that  the  natural 
increase  of  the  population  is  inversely  as  its  density  in  all  of  the  States, 
and  that  the  increase  of  the  whole  population,  for  the  decades  after  1840, 
would  be  32;  31.3;  30.5;  29.6;  28.6;  27.5  per  cent.  Should  emigra 
tion,  however,  remain  as  it  was  then,  or  be  but  slightly  increased  from  year 
to  year,  the  series,  he  supposed,  would  be  31. 8;  3  0.9;  30;  29;  27.9;  26.8 
per  cent.  The  results  upon  either  series  will  be  here  shown,  but  upon  both 
they  fall  greatly  short  of  the  fact  for  1850.  The  ratio  from  1840  to  1850 
increased  over  three  per  cent,  instead  of  declining  as  before  from  the  pre 
vious  decade,  a  result  not  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  admission  of  Cali 
fornia,  New  Mexico,  &c. 


24  UNCERTAINTY    OF   STATISTICS. 

Population  Population 

Years.  on  first  aeries.  on  second  series. 

1850 22,4.00,000  22,000,000 

1860 29,400,000  28,800,000 

1870 38,300,000  36,500,000 

1880 49,600,000  46,500,000 

1890 63,000,000  59,800,000 

1900 80,000,000  74,000,000." 

[Compend.  U.  S.  Census,  1850, .p.  130.] 

This  table  is  based  upon  the  assumption  of  an  increase  of  population 
in  a  geometrical  ratio,  without  an  adequate  compensation  for  those  causes 
which  are  always  operating  to  increase  or  diminish  this  ratio,  and 
which  are  so  variable  in  their  character  as  to  elude  all  fixed  geometrical 
rules. 

Could  a  population  be  found  in  which  the  increase  arose  solely  from 
births  and  the  decrease  of  deaths,  entirely  unaffected  by  migration,  it  would 
be  found  that  the  excess  of  births  above  that  of  deaths  in  each  year,  would 
be  in  a  fixed  ratio  to  the  number  living  at  the  beginning  of  the  year,  which 
progression,  with  a  knowledge  of  the  circumstances  affecting  the  rate  of 
mortality,  might  be  determined ;  for,  if  the  number  of  births  above  that  of 
the  deaths,  bore  an  exact  ratio  to  the  population  living,  at  any  one  fixed 
period,  the  increase  could  be  measured  and  its  results  determined  by  a  pro 
cess  in  geometrical  progression. 

But  as  there  is  no  country,  and  probably  no  part  of  a  country,  where 
the  population  has  remained  for  any  length  of  time  so  stationary  as  to  be 
unaffected  by  migration,  it  follows,  that  in  order  to  make  a  tolerably  near 
approach  to  the  ratio  of  increase,  the  effect  of  this  migration  must  be  taken 
into  consideration ;  and  as  it  is  extremely  difficult  to  determine  with  any 
degree  of  precision,  either  the  numbers  or  the  ages  of  those  who  enter  or 
depart,  so  it  is  proportionably  difficult  to  fix  the  rate  of  increase  or  decrease 
for  any  length  of  time  dependant  upon  their  absence  or  presence. 


MORTALITY    RETURNS. 


Besides,  all  the  facts  upon  which  these  tables  of  the  future  progress  of 
population  are  based,  have  been  taken  from  the  movements  of  the 
living ;  whereas,  in  order  to  ascertain  with  any  exactness  the  probable 
increasing  population,  it  is  necessary  to  determine  the  numbers  and  the 
ages  of  those  who  die,  as  well  as  of  those  who  survive.  The  seventh 
census  is  the  only  one  that  has  attempted  to  supply  this  last  element  of 
calculation. 

These  returns  show  an  aggregate  of  320,023  deaths  for  the  year  begin 
ning  June  1st,  1849,  and  ending  June  1st,  1850,  or  one  death  to  every 
72.5  inhabitants.  The  report  itself,  in  estimating  the  value  to  be  attached 
to  these  statistics,  supposes  that  one-fourth  of  the  whole  number  of  deaths 
which  have  occurred  in  the  Union  during  the  period  of  one  year  prior  to  the 
enumeration  of  1850,  have  not  been  reported.  Assuming  this  as  the  error, 
the  whole  number  of  deaths  reported  and  not  reported  would  be  400,028, 
or  one  death  to  58  inhabitants. 

The  average  mortality  of  the  English  population  for  the  five  years, 
1838-42,  was  2.207  per  cent.,  or  nearly  one  in  forty-five.  The  following 
table  from  the  sixth  report  of  the  Registrar-General,  gives  in  a  condensed 
form,  the  rates  of  mortality  of  several  of  the  principal  European  States, 
including  England.  The  enumeration  in  this  latter  country  being  confined 
to  England  and  Wales,  exhibits  a  much  more  favorable  standard  than  it 
would  if  Ireland  and  Scotland  were  included. 


ANNUAL 

IIEAIIIS. 

ISM    11      > 

OKTiUTT. 

Year. 

Number. 

Per  Cent. 

Living  to  1 
Death. 

England   

1841 

15,927  867 

1838-42 

846,905 

2.207 

45 

1841 

34  213  929 

1838-42 

816,840 

2.397 

42 

1840 

14  928  501 

1838-41 

392,349 

2.058 

88 

1840 

21  571  594 

1839-42 

651  239 

2.995 

33 

1842 

49,525,420 

1842 

1,856,138 

urao 

28 

— \Mh  Rfffiftrar-ffenfraft  Report,  p.  xxxix. 


26  MORTALITY   STATISTICS   CORRECTED 

A  comparison  of  the  mortuary  records  of  the  United  States,  with  those 
of  the  European  countries  above  enumerated,  would  lead  to  the  belief  that 
a  much  larger  number  of  unenumerated  deaths  had  occurred  than  is  pre 
sumed  by  the  census  reports.  Were  the  arbitrary  assumption  to  be  made 
that  the  number  of  unrecorded  deaths  was  equal  to  "one-half,  instead  of 
one-fourth,  of  those  recorded,  the  aggregate  number  would  be  480,080,  or 
one  death  to  48.31  of  the  living,  which  produces  a  result  much  more  in 
accordance  with  those  of  other  countries  in  which  reliable  mortuary  statis 
tics  are  kept,  than  the  hypothesis  of  the  census  report ;  and  for  this  reason, 
and  for  this  alone,  is  entitled  to  more  confidence. 

Prof.  Tucker,  in  his  ingenious  observations  upon  the  probabilities  of 
life  in  the  United  States,  has  deduced  the  relative  number  of  deaths,  from 
the  returns  "of  the  living,  with  results  somewhat  corresponding  to  those  just 
given. 

"  The  details  of  the  census  of  1850,"  remarks  Prof.  Tucker,  "  compared 
with  those  of  the  census  of  1840,  fortunately  afford  us  materials  for  making 
this  interesting  estimate  with  a  near  approximation  to  the  truth,  as  we  shall 
thus  see. 

"  It  is  clear  that  the  difference  between  the  whole  population  of  1840, 
and  the  part  of  the  population  of  1850  over  ten  years  of  age,  would  show 
the  number  of  deaths  in  ten  years,  if  the  country  had  neither  emigration 
nor  immigration.  The  emigration,  however,  is  insignificant,  and  the  number 
of  immigrants  with  their  increase,  we  have  now  the  means  of  ascertaining. 
But  as  our  numbers  in  1850  were  augmented  by  the  accession  of  Texas, 
New  Mexico,  and  California,  as  well  as  by  immigration,  the  population  thus 
acquired  must  also  be  deducted.  Having  found  the  mortality  of  the  whole 
population  of  1840,  that  of  those  who  have  since  come  into  existence, 
and  are  of  course  under  ten  in  1850,  will  be  the  subject  of  separate  esti 
mate,  for  which  the  census  also  furnishes  materials.  Let  us  now  see  the 
result  : — 


BY    RETURNS   OF   THE   LIVING. 


27 


Of  the  whole  population  of  1850 23,191,877 

The  whole  number  under  ten  is  6,730,044 

The  number  over  ten  is  16,461,832 

"  To  ascertain  the  number  of  immigrants  to  be  deducted  from  the 
16,461,832,  we  must  ascertain — 1.  The  number  of  immigrants  under  ten  on 
the  1st  of  June,  1850.  2.  The  number  over  ten  who  had  died  between 
their  arrival  and  June,  1850.  These  numbers  are  exhibited  in  the  fol- 
loAving  table  : — * 


Whole  No.  of 
immigrants. 

No.  of  children 
under  ten, 
when  they 
arrived. 

No.  of 
years  to 
June, 
1850. 

No.  of  child, 
ren  uader 
ten,  June  1, 
1850. 

No.  of 
deaths,  to 
June  1, 

1S50. 

No.  over 
ten, 
June  1, 

I860. 

1840-1  

88  504 

12  825 

91 

642 

10  110 

72  752 

1841-2  

101  107 

151  66 

gi 

2  275 

11  1H5 

87  727 

1842-3  

75  159 

11  274 

71 

2  817 

7  299 

64  043 

1843-4  

74  607 

11  100 

61 

8  91fi 

0  182 

65  509 

1844-5  

102  415 

15  362 

51 

6  912 

7,068 

88  435 

1845-6  

147  051 

22  057 

44 

r>  131 

8  167 

126753 

1846-7  

220  882 

33  027 

3A 

20,867 

9,384 

190,631 

1847-8  

44  450 

21 

24  760 

''  I  :;."> 

26''  4<)2 

1848-9  

2<)6  938 

44  540 

11 

37  783 

5215 

253,940 

1849-50  

223  984 

33  597 

1 

22  270 

2  357 

199  357 

l,f>22,034 

243,488 

m,373 

76,022 

1,411,639 

"  If,  then,  we  deduct  from  the  16,461,832,  the  population  of  1850  over 
ten  years  of  age,  the  number  of  emigrants  over  that  age  equal  to  1,411,639, 
and  also  the  number  over  ten  in  the  newly  acquired  territories  of  Texas, 
&c.,  which  by  computation  is  about  135,000,  the  difference  will  be 
14,915,193,  which  is  the  number  of  the  survivors  of  the  population  of 
June  1,  1840.  As  this  population  was  17,069,453,  a  deduction  of  the 
14,915,193  survivors  shows  the  number  of  deaths  in  ten  years  to  have  been 
2,154,258,  averaging  215,425.8  a  year.  As  in  computing  the  rate  of  mor- 


•  In  the  computation  of  deaths  contained  in  th«  above  table,  I  have,  with  some  hesitation,  allowed  a 
som«what  greater  mortality  than  is  warranted  in  the  Carlisle  life  tables,  those  of  Quctclet,  and  others,  since  I 
have  assumed  one-tenth  of  the  children  of  the  immigrants  to  be  under  one  year,  which  probably  greatly  over 
rates  their  number  at  an  age  when  the  rate  of  mortality  is  far  greater  than  at  any  other  age. 


28  MORTALITY    STATISTICS   CORRECTED 

talitj  the  deaths  are  compared  with  numbers  beginning  with  17,069,453^ 
and  gradually  descending  through  the  ten  years  to  14,915,193,  we  must 
take  the  medium  between  those  numbers,  which  is  15,992,324.  Now,  if 
this  number  be  divided  by  the  annual  deaths,  215,425.8,  it  will  show  the 
average  annual  mortality  to  be  1  in  74.2  in  that  part  of  the  population 
which  is  over  ten  years  of  age. 

"  To  ascertain  the  mortality  of  those  under  ten,  our  data  are  somewhat 
less  precise  and  satisfactory.  Two  modes  of  making  the  estimate  present 
themselves,  which  lead  to  different  results ;  and  when  we  shall  have  more 
full  and  reliable  data  than  at  present,  truth  will  probably  be  found  to  lie 
between  them. 

"  First. — If  we  assume  that  the  mortality  of  the  children  under  ten  is 
the  same  in  the  United  States  as  in  France,  according  to  their  respective 
numbers — and  there  is  no  obvious  reason  why  it  should  be  materially  dif 
ferent — then,  according  to  the  tables  which  we  owe  to  the  patient  labors  of 
Heuschling,  the  number  of  deaths  of  the  children  under  ten  in  the  United 
States,  in  1850,  was  224,868,  exclusive  of  the  children  of  immigrants  be 
tween  1840  and  1850.  If  to  this  number  we  add  the  deaths  of  the  popu 
lation  over  ten,  215,425,  we  have  440,293  for  the  whole  number  of  deaths 
in  1850,  which  exhibits  a  mortality  of  1  in  43.4. 

"  Secondly. — If,  however,  we  adopt  the  unsatisfactory  data  afforded  by 
the  seventh  census,  then  we  may  thus  estimate  the  average  mortality. 
According  to  that  census,  the  number  of  white  and  free  colored  children 
Avho  died  under  one  year  of  age,  was  43,055,  which  it  must  be  recollected 
included  the  children  of  immigrants,  with  the  increase  of  the  population 
generally,  for  the  year  1850.  Let  us  deduct  ten  per  cent,  for  this  portion  ; 
for,  though  the  children  of  immigrants  appear  not  to  have  exceeded  an 
llth  or  12th  of  that  class,  yet,  in  consideration  of  the  admitted  greater 


UY    RETURNS   OF   THE   LIVING.  29 

mortality,  both  of  immigrants  and  their  children,  10  per  cent,  does  not  seem 
too  much  for  their  proportion  of  deaths.  If  to  the  number,  thus  reduced 
to  38,749,  we  add  the  number  of  slaves  who  die  at  that  early  age,  10,481, 
we  shall  have  49,230  deaths  of  children  in  the  first  year  after  their  birth. 

"  What  is  the  number  for  the  other  nine  years  ?  It  may  be  approx 
imated  in  this  way.  The  whole  number  of  white  persons  from  5  to  10  years 
of  age,  and  from  10  to  15,  is  5,106,257,  one-tenth  of  which  may  be  pre 
sumed  to  give  the  number  of  those  whose  age  is  about  ten.  If  one-tenth  of 
this  tenth  be  deducted  (for  the  children  of  immigrants,)  the  remainder, 
459,563,  will  exhibit  the  number  of  children  ten  years  old  in  1850,  of  the 
population  of  1840. 

"  Their  annual  number  of  deaths  we  will  assume  to  be  1  in  120,  which 
assumes  a  somewhat  greater  mortality  than  is  estimated  at  this  period  of 
life  by  the  most  approved  life  tables  of  Europe.  This  would  be  3,998.7  for 
the  annual  deaths  of  the  whites  of  10  years  of  age,  and  852.2  for  those  of 
the  colored  race,  in  all  4,852.  But  as  there  were  49,230  deaths  of  both 
classes  in  the  first  year  of  the  decade,  and  4,852  in  the  last,  the  mean — 
27,041 — gives  us  the  annual  average  deaths  of  one-tenth  of  the  children 
under  10,  or  270,410  for  the  whole  number.  To  this,  if  we  add  215,425  for 
the  deaths  of  persons  over  ten,  we  shall  have  485,836  for  the  annual  deaths 
of  the  population  of  1840,  excluding  all  accessions  from  foreign  sources. 

The  population  of  1850,  with  that  exclusion,  is  as  follows  : — 

Gross  amount 23,191,876 

From  which,  deduct  the  immigrants,  with  their  increase,  at 
the  rate  of  3  per  cent,  per  annum  from  the  time  of  their 
arrival 1,840,233 

Accession  from  Texag,  &c. . ., 200,000 

2,040,233 


21,151,643 


30  ANNUAL   MORTALITY. 

"  The  mean  between  this  number  and  the  17,069,453,  the  population 
of  1840,  is  19,110,548,  which,  divided  by  485,836,  the  total  number  of 
annual  deaths,  we  have  an  average  mortality  in  the  year  of  39.3  for  the 
whole  population,  white  and  colored,  bond  and  free." 

These  deductions  are  certainly  curious,  and  in  the  absence  of  more 
positive  elements  of  calculation,  are  entitled  to  respectful  consideration. 
The  number  of  deaths,  as  made  apparent  by  the  mortality  returns,  is  evi 
dently  under-estimated :  the  extent  of  the  error  can  only  be  approximated  by 
the  assumption  of  such  data  as  are  supplied  by  the  returns  of  the  living ;  and 
although  the  conclusions  derived  from  this  source  are  by  no  means  beyond 
question,  yet  they  furnish  the  best  means  of  correcting  the  error,  at  the  dis 
posal  of  the  philosophic  enquirer. 


AGES   OF    POPULATION.  31 


CHAPTER  III. 

PRODUCTIVE    CAPACITY   OF    POPULATION. 

The  extreme  rapidity  with  which  the  population  of  this  country  has 
increased,  has  led  to  the  adoption  of  the  popular  belief,  that  because  its  per 
centage  of  increase  has  exceeded  that  of  any  other  country,  it  is  conse 
quently  the  most  healthy  of  all  others. 

Eminent  statisticians,  and  particularly  those  of  other  countries,  deducing 
their  results  from  the  living  alone,  have  arrived  at  a  different  conclusion. 
Mr.  Chadwick,  in  his  work  on  the  "  Pressure  and  Progress  of  the  Causes  of 
Mortality  among  Different  Classes  of  the  Community,"  published  in  1844, 
remarks : — 

"  Notwithstanding  the  earlier  marriages,  and  the  extent  of  emigration, 
and  the  general  increase  of  the  population,  the  whole  circumstances  appear 
to  me  to  prove  this  to  be  the  case  of  a  population  depressed  to  a  low 
age,  chiefly  by  the  greater  proportionate  pressure  of  the  causes  of  disease 
and  premature  mortality.  The  proportionate  numbers  at  each  interval  of 
age,  in  every  10,000  of  the  two  populations,  are  as  follows  : — 

United  States  of  America.  England  and  Wales. 

Under5y«ars     1744  1324 

5  and  under  10    1417  1197 

10          "         15  1210  1089 

15          "         20  1091  997 

20          "          30  .                   1816  1780 


40  

United  States  of  America. 
.  ...                          H60      

England  and  Wales. 

1289 

50   

732       

959 

60   

436     

645 

70 

245     

440 

80  

113     

216 

90   

32     

59 

ds 

4     

5 

32  YOUTHFUL    CHARACTER   OF    POPULATION. 

30  and  under  40 

40 

50 

60 

70 

80 

90  and  upwards 

10,000  10,000 

Average  age  of  all  the  living 22  years  2  months.  26  years  7  months. 

"  Here  it  may  be  observed,  that  whilst  in  England  there  are  5025  per 
sons  between  15  and  50,  who  have  3610  children  or  persons  under  15 ;  in 
America  there  are  4789  persons  living  between  15  and  50  years  of  age,  who 
have  4371  children  dependent  upon  them.  In  England  there  are  in  every 
ten  thousand  persons  1365  who  have  obtained  above  50  years'  experience; 
in  America  there  are  only  830. 

"  The  moral  consequences  of  the  predominance  of  the  young  and  pas 
sionate  in  the  American  community,  are  attested  by  observers  to  be  such 
as  have  already  been  described  in  the  General  Sanatory  Report  as  charac 
teristic  of  those  crowded,  filthy,  and  badly  administered  districts  in  Eng 
land,  where  the  average  duration  of  life  is  short,  the  proportion  of  the  very 
young  great,  and  the  adult  generation  transient. 

"  The  difference  does  not  arise  solely  from  the  greater  proportion  of 
children  arising  from  a  greater  increase  of  population,  though  that  is  to 
some  extent  consistent  with  what  has  been  proved  to  be  the  effect  of  a 
severe  general  mortality ;  the  effects  of  the  common  cause  of  depression  is 
observable  at  each  interval  of  age ;  the  adult  population  in  America  is 
younger  than  in  England,  and  if  the  causes  of  early  death  were  to  remain 
the  same,  it  may  be  confidently  predicted  that  the  American  population 
would  remain  young  for  centuries. 


IN    THE    UNITED    STATES.  33 

Years.        Months. 
The  average  age  of  all  alive  above  15  in  America  is 33  6 

The  average  age  of  all  alive  above  15  years  in  England  and 

Wales  is 37  5 

The  average  age  of  all  above  20  years  in  America  is 37  7 

In  the  whole  of  England  the  average  of  all  above  20  years  is  41  1." 

The  average  age  of  the  whole  population,  according  to  the  census  of 
1840,  is  correctly  given  by  Mr.  Chadwick.  The  average  age  of  the  white 
population  is  22.71  years.  The  returns  of  1850  show  an  increase  of  the 
aggregate  age,  from  Mr.  Chadwick's  estimate,  from  22. 16,  to  that  of  22.89 
years,  and  of  the  white  population  from  22.71  to  23.10,  which,  as  compared 
with  the  previous  census,  furnishes  a  highly  favorable  result  :— 

Classes.  Average  age. 

Whites 23.10 

Free  colored  24.54 

Slaves  .  .  21.35 


Aggregate 22.89 

A  country  whose  population  is  so  distributed  that  the  larger  proportion 
of  its  members  are  of  an  age  which  fits  them  for  active  employments,  is 
placed  under  circumstances  the  most  favorable  for  advancement.  Mr. 
Shattuck  has  proposed  a  division  of  society  into  three  classes,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  determining  the  number  of  those  fitted  for  employment,  and  those 
which  are  not — those  under  fifteen  years  of  age  he  denominates  the  depend 
ant  class,  because  dependant  upon  others  for  support ;  those  between  fifteen 
and  sixty  he  calls  the  productive  class,  because  they  are  in  the  full  possession 
of  their  energies,  and  competent  not  only  to  produce  a  sufficiency  for  them 
selves,  but  likewise  for  those  who  are  dependant  upon  them ;  those  above 
sixty  he  defines  as  the  aged  class.  With  the  view  of  ascertaining  the  con- 


34 


PROPORTION    OF    PRODUCTIVE 


dition  of  the  population  as  affected  by  this  standard,  the  following  table  has 
been  constructed : — 


AGE. 

WHITES. 

FREE  COLORED. 

ELATES. 

AGGREGATE. 

Number. 

Ratio 
per  ct. 

Number. 

Ratio 
per  ct. 

Number. 

Ratio 
per  ct. 

45.43 
50.87 
3.58 
.12 

Number. 

Ratio 
per  ct. 

8,002,715 
10/720,175 
819,871 

40.93 
54.83 
4.19 
.05 

171,181 
238,859 
24,169 
286 

39.40 
54.97 
5.56 
.07 

1,455,774 
1,630,095 
114,752 
3,692 

9,629,670 
12,589,129 
958,792 
14,285 

41.52 
54.28 
4.14 
.06 

Unknown  ages  

10,307 

Totals  

19,553,068 

100.00J      434,495 

100.00 

3,204,313 

100.00 

23.191,876 

100.00 

In  this,  as  in  the  preceding  table,  an  advance  in  the  elements  of  pro 
ductiveness  are  manifest.  The  productive  class  of  the  white  population  in 
1830,  was  51.01  per  cent.,  and  the  burdensome,  composed  of  the  young  and 
the  aged,  48.99  per  cent.  In  1840,  the  productive  class  was  52.35,  and  the 
burdensome,  47.65  per  cent.  ;  and  in  1850,  the  former  class  had  increased 
to  54.83  per  cent.,  while  the  latter  had  declined  to  45.17  per  cent., 
being  an  increase  of  2.48  per  cent,  in  the  productive  capacity  of  the 
whole  population,  and  a  corresponding  decline  in  the  ratio  of  those 
requiring  support.  The  productive  class  in  England  is  56.70  per  cent,  of 
the  population ;  and  in  Sweden,  56.93  per  cent.,  being  about  two  per  cent, 
higher  than  in  the  United  States. 

It  is  a  question  whether  a  larger  amount  of  the  results  of  produc 
tiveness  may  not  be  evolved,  with  a  less  per  centage  of  productive  capacity, 
numerically,  for  a  long  consecutive  period  of  years  in  the  United  States 
than  in  England  or  Sweden.  In  both  of  these  countries,  as  well  as  in  most 
others,  except  this,  upon  which  extensive  observations  have  been  made,  the 
density  of  population  is  such  as  to  require  a  large  proportion  of  the  fruits 
of  the  earth  garnered  each  year  to  maintain  the  population. 

When  from  any  cause  the  crops  fall  greatly  short  of  their  usual  amount, 
much  distress  is  pi'oduced  among  the  laboring  population,  who  depend  for 


AND    BURDENSOME    CLASSES.  35 

their  daily  supply  of  food,  upon  the  earnings  of  their  daily  labor.  The 
proportion  which  the  rate  of  wages  bears  to  the  necessaries  of  life  being 
largely  diminished  by  the  exaltation  of  the  prices  of  food,  occasioned  by 
the  scarcity,  the  amount  of  food  consumed  by  the  laboring  classes  is  les 
sened  in  quantity,  and  not  unfrequently  deteriorated  in  quality. 

The  effect  of  a  diminished  supply  of  food  is  to  lessen  the  capacity  for 
labor,  and  to  induce  disease.  It  is  consequently  found  that  dysentery, 
fever,  and  frequently  severe  epidemics,  are  the  constant  attendants  upon 
short  crops  in  such  communities  as  reside  in  the  more  populous  countries  of 
the  globe. 

The  failure  of  the  potato  crop  in  Ireland  in  1846  and  1847,  was  fol 
lowed  by  one  of  the  most  severe  visitations  of  typhus  fever  which  has 
ever  desolated  that  country. 

The  Prussian  Government,  whose  registration  system  is  so  perfect,  as  to 
give  a  very  accurate  idea  of  the  movement  of  its  inhabitants,  became  so 
much  alarmed  at  the  effect  of  the  diminished  crop  of  1855,  as  to  induce 
it  to  order  a  series  of  experiments  to  be  made  upon  Indian  Corn,  as  an 
article  of  food,  for  its  humbler  population,  in  the  event  of  the  deficiency 
amounting  to  a  serious  inconvenience.  This  provident  act  was  induced  by 
a  full  knowledge  of  the  baneful  effects  of  short  crops  as  revealed  by  the 
registration  system. 

The  large  amount  of  land  under  cultivation  in  the  United  States,  and 
the  abundant  harvests  invariably  secured,  furnish  to  each  individual  a 
quantity  of  food  exceeding  threefold  in  amount  that  used  by  the  average 
laboring  classes  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  and  places  all  thought  of  a  small 
supply  out  of  the  question. 

With  the  exception  of  some  few  employments  in  the  more  populous 
cities,  labor  is  always  in  demand  at  such  remunerative  wages  as  to  admit  of 
the  purchase  of  nutritious  food,  not  only  in  quantities  sufficient  to  sustain 


36  RELATIVE    MEANS   OF   SUBSISTENCE. 

life,  but  to  gratify  the  cravings  of  the  most  inordinate  appetite.  The  artizan 
in  town,  and  the  laborer  in  the  country,  are  supplied  each  day  with  a  sub 
stantial  repast  of  animal  and  vegetable  food.  This  is  a  matter  of  universal 
occurrence,  and  extends  to  every  section  of  the  country,  and  with  but  few 
exceptions  to  each  department  of  industry.  These  exceptions  are  to  be 
found  principally  among  the  females  in  populous  cities,  who  gain  their  live 
lihood  by  plain  sewing,  the  manufacture  of  cheap  clothing,  and  like  unre- 
munerative  occupations. 

"  The  standard  of  comfort  for  the  laboring  class  is  much  higher  here 
than  it  is  in  England,  so  far  as  it  concerns  the  consumption  of  animal  food, 
in  consequence  of  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  this  country,  where  the  hus 
bandry  and  useful  arts  of  a  cultivated  people  are  conjoined  with  the  thin 
population  of  a  rude  one.  In  every  part  of  Europe,  population  and  the  arts 
have  advanced  at  the  same  rate  ;  and  the  ascertained  slowness  of  the  rate 
supposes  straitened  means  of  subsistence  in  every  stage  of  the  progress. 
This  is  conclusively  proved,  as  to  England,  by  the  fact  that  her  population, 
which,  in  1377,  had  been  2,350,000,  had  increased  in  1800,  that  is,  in  423 
years,  only  to  8,872,980  ;  since  nothing  but  great  difficulty  in  obtaining  the 
means  of  subsistence,  and  extreme  discomfort  with  the  great  mass  of  the 
people,  could  have  retarded  the  period  of  duplication  with  our  progenitors 
to  upwards  of  two  hundred  years."* 

That  a  population  supplied  with  an  abundance  of  substantial  food,  is 
competent  to  perform  a  greater  amount  of  labor  than  a  similar  population, 
but  illy  provided  for  in  this  particular,  is  evident.  What  is  the  direct  effect 
upon  the  physical  energies  of  the  population  of  the  United  States,  produced 
by  this  condition  of  things,  can  only  be  ascertained  by  an  accumulation  of 
statistical  evidence. 

*  Tucker's  Progress  of  the  United  States,  p.  112. 


EMPLOYED  AND  IDLE  CLASSES.  37 

The  employments  of  the  industrial  classes  furnish  a  tolerably  fair 
indication  of  the  available  labor  of  a  population.  With  this  view,  the  fol 
lowing  summary  of  the  pursuits  of  the  population  of  the  United  States 
is  given  : — 

"  Of  the  free  population  in  1850,  amounting  to  19,987,563,  the  number 
of  males  above  fifteen  years  of  age  who  were  employed  in  different  branches 
of  industry  was  5,371,876.  Supposing  the  number  of  females,  who  in  their 
appropriate  employments  are  at  least  as  industrious  as  the  males,  to  be  equal, 
then  the  industrious  class  of  both  sexes  above  fifteen  amount  to  10,743,562. 
The  difference  between  this  number  and  that  of  the  whole  free  population 
is  9,243,811.  If  from  this  residue  we  deduct  the  tenants  of  the  poor-houses, 
hospitals,  jails,  and  penitentiaries,  the  superannuated  and  the  children  under 
fifteen,  all  of  whom  are  either  too  young  to  work,  are  already  employed  or 
qualifying  themselves  for  future  employment,  the  remainder,  constituting 
the  voluntary  idle  and  unproductive  class,  would  be  an  inconsiderable  por 
tion  of  the  community,  as  may  be  thus  seen  :— 

Whole  number,  after  deducting  the  working  classes    9,243,811 

Children  under  15  by  the  census 8,173,896 

Persons  over  seventy  by  the  same 308,686 

Paupers  by  the  same   50,352 

In  hospitals  for  the  insane,  blind,  &c.,  by  the  same 50,994 

In  State  prisons  and  penitentiaries,  by  the  same 5,646 

In  jails  and  houses  of  correction 7,444 

8,597,018 


Whole  number  of  idle  class  646,793 

"  It  would  thus  seem  that  the  whole  number  of  the  idle  class  of  both 
sexes  between  the  ages  of  fifteen  and  seventy  is  less  than  3  per  cent,  or  one 
person  in  thirty-three  of  the  free  population  ;  and  though  the  labor  to  which 


38  CHARACTER   OF   OCCUPATION. 

man  is  inevitably  destined  is  occasionally  excessive  or  irksome,  yet  in  the 
main  his  bread  is  sweetened  as  well  as  moistened  by  the  sweat  with  which 
it  is  earned  : — * 

Of  these,  there  are  engaged  in — 

1.  Mental  pursuits 179,032  or    3  per  cent. 

2.  Producers    2,544,777   «  42 

3.  Manufacturers    1,229,607   "  24        " 

4.  Commercial  pursuits 316,053   "     6 

5.  Miscellaneous 1,102,422   «  19        " 


5,371,876      100 


*  Ibid  Appendix,  p.  44. 


EMIGRATION*. 


39 


CHAPTER   IV. 


EMIGRATION. 


The  effect  of  emigration  upon  the  population  of  the  United  States  is 
an  important  one,  and  requires  especial  consideration.  The  entire  foreign 
population  in  1850  was  2,210,839,  and  its  ratio  to  the  white  and  free 
colored  population,  11.06  per  cent.,  which  is  thus  distributed:— 


States  and  Territories. 

Total  Foreign. 

Per  ct.  of  foreign 
to  white  and  free 
col'd  population. 

States  and  Territories. 

Total  Foreign. 

Per  ct.  of  foreign 
to  white  and  free 
colM  pi)  i  Dilation. 

Alabama  

7  638 

1.78 

13  571 

4.27 

1  628 

1.00 

58  364 

11   93 

22  358 

24.15 

651  801 

21  04 

Columbia,  District  of.  ... 

4  967 

10.85 

2  524 

.43 

Connecticut  

87  473 

10.11 

Ohio  

218  512 

11  .03 

5  211 

5  84 

294  871 

12  75 

2  757 

5.73 

28  111 

16   66 

Georgia  

5  907 

1.13 

8,662 

8.06 

Illinois  

110  593 

12.99 

Tennessee  

5740 

76 

54  4°6 

6  51 

Texas         

16774 

10  86 

Iowa  

21,232 

11.05 

32,831 

10.45 

Kentucky  

29  189 

3.78 

22  394 

2  36 

66413 

24.33 

106  696 

34.94 

Maine  

31  456 

5.39 

f  Minnesota.  .  .  . 

2,048 

88.70 

Maryland  

63  288 

10.82 

Terri-   J  New  Mexico  . 

2,063 

s.  re 

160  909 

16.18 

1,159 

8.72 

54  852 

13.79 

[  Utah  

1  990 

17.63 

4  958 

1  67 

Missouri  

72,474 

12.19 

Total  

2,210,839 

11.06 

Of  these,  961,719  were  born  in  Ireland  ;  278,675  in  England;  70,550 
in  Scotland;  29,868  in  Wales;  147,711  in  British  America;  54,069  in 
France  ;  10,549  in  Prussia  ;  573,225  in  the  rest  of  Germany  ;  946  in  Aus 
tria  ;  13,358  in  Switzerland  ;  12,678  in  Norway ;  9,848  in  Holland;  3,559 
in  Sweden;  3,113  in  Spain;  3,645  in  Italy;  5,772  in  the  West  Indies; 
1,638  in  Denmark  ;  1,313  in  Belgium  ;  1,414  in  Russia  ;  1,274  in  Portugal ; 


40 


EFFECT    OF   EMIGRATION. 


785  in  China;  585  in  the  Sandwich  Islands;  13,317  in  Mexico;  and  1,543 
in  South  America.  From  this  it  would  appear  that  the  British  subjects, 
born  either  in  Great  Britain,  Ireland,  or  British  America,  who  had  emi 
grated  to  the  United  States,  numbered  1,488,523,  and  constitute  two-thirds 
of  the  whole  foreign-born  population. 

In  the  selection  of  their  residence,  the  immigrants  have  manifested  a 
decided  preference  for  some  sections  of  country  over  others ;  thus,  while  in 
the  Middle  States  they  constitute  one-fifth  of  the  population,  and  in  the 
Northern  and  Eastern  a  little  less  than  one-eighth,  their  ratio  in  the  South 
western  is  diminished  to  one-twentieth,  and  in  the  Southern  States  to  one- 
fiftieth  of  the  whole  population. 

The  two  States  least  affected  by  foreign  emigration  are  North  Carolina 
and  Tennessee ;  the  whole  number  in  the  former  State  being  2,524,  and 
constituting  but  forty-three  hundredths  of  one  per  cent,  of  the  entire  popu 
lation  ;  and  in  the  latter  5,740,  and  making  three-fourths  of  one  per  cent,  of 
the  whole  number  of  inhabitants.  In  South  Carolina,  the  number  of  foreign 
inhabitants  is  8,662,  and  bears  a  ratio  of  3.06  per  cent,  to  the  entire  popu 
lation.  Of  these,  4,643  reside  in  the  city  of  Charleston,  and  4019  in  the 
rural  districts,  The  foreign  population  of  Charleston  constitutes  21,28  per 
cent,  of  the  whole. 

Indeed,  there  appears  to  be  a  marked  desire  on  the  part  of  immi 
grants  to  select  populous  cities,  rather  than  rural  districts,  as  a  place  of 
residence.  The  annexed  table,  showing  the  proportion  of  Irish,  German 
and  Prussian  immigrants  residing  in  the  large  cities,  will  develope  this 
proposition : 


I860. 

In  United  States. 

In  large  cities. 

Ratio  per  ct.  to  whole. 

961,719 

382  402 

39  76 

683,774 

212,559 

36.43 

CONDITION    OF    IMMIGRANTS. 


41 


The  annexed  exhibit  of  the  native  and  foreign  population  of  the  fol 
lowing  European  States,  shows  how  much  more  decided  the  effect  of  this 
element  is  in  this  country  than  in  Europe  : — 


Genius. 

Whole 
Population. 

Foreign 
Population. 

Per  ct.  of  Foreign 
Population. 

Great  Britain  and  the  islands  in  the  British  seas.  . 

1851 
1851 

20,959,477 
35  783  170 

56,665 
378  563 

0.27 
1   06 

Denmark  

1851 

1  407  747 

13  042 

0  48 

1848 

4  918  855 

26465 

0  54 

Holland  

1840 

3  056  879 

70  856 

2  32 

Belgium  

1846 

4,337,196 

76,479 

1.76 

Much  the  largest  proportion  of  emigrants  who  arrive  in  the  United 
States  are  in  the  most  humble  circumstances,  frequently  with  constitutions 
shattered  by  privation,  and  with  slender  means  to  provide  for  themselves 
even  the  most  simple  necessaries  of  life.  From  early  association,  aided, 
perhaps,  by  the  necessity  of  the  moment,  they  arc  accustomed  to  herd 
together  (for  they  cannot  be  said  to  live)  in  large  numbers,  in  those  parts 
of  our  populous  seaports  where  rooms  are  less  expensive,  and  a  residence  is 
least  desirable. 

Surrounded  by  all  the  elements  of  disease  which  abound  in  the  densely 
crowded  and  illy  ventilated  portions  of  populous  places,  the  victims  of  pre 
vious  privation,  and  of  present  want,  it  might  naturally  be  inferred  that 
the  mortality  among  them  would  be  very  great.  It  unfortunately  happens, 
however,  that  few  bills  of  mortality  are  kept  in  such  a  manner  as  to  afford 
a  satisfactory  solution  to  this  question.  Those  of  New  York,  and  some  of 
the  other  cities,  give  the  nativity  of  the  persons  deceased,  and  in  this 
manner  some  clue  may  be  had  to  the  ratio  of  deaths  among  the  adult 
population.  The  mortality  returns  of  Boston  and  Providence  show,  that 
that  the  mortality  among  the  offspring  of  the  immigrant  population,  who 
inhabit  large  cities,  particularly  in  the  earliest  period  of  life,  is  very  great, 


42  CONDITION    OF    IMMIGRANTS, 

and  far  exceeds  that  which  occurs  among  the  native  population.  Admitting 
an  equality  between  the  immigrant  and  native  population  in  all  other  circum 
stances,  than  that  of  the  density  of  their  numbers,  and  the  disposition  of  the 
former  to  crowd  themselves  into  an  inconceivably  small  space,  and  there  is 
left  in  this  source  alone  a  wide  disproportion  as  to  the  chances  of  life  against 
the  immigrant ;  for,  under  like  circumstances,  the  more  closely  individuals 
are  congregated  together,  either  in  their  habitations  or  their  persons,  the 
greater  is  the  danger  of  disease,  and  the  less  the  probabilities  of  life.  The 
annexed  extract  from  the  North  American  Review,  giving  a  description  of 
a  certain  district  in  Boston,  is  corroborative  of  these  views  :— 

"  The  district  selected  for  comparison  comprises  Broad,  Cove,  and  Sea 
streets.  These  streets  are  situated  near  the  wharves.  They  are  built  prin 
cipally  upon  made  land,  and  have  numerous  blind  alleys  leading  from  them. 
The  streets  and  alleys  are  badly  drained,  and  crowded  with  an  overflowing 
population.  A  large  number  of  the  houses  have  no  means  of  sewerage 
whatever,  and  all  their  refuse  of  every  description  stagnates  about  the  yards, 
spreading  on  every  side  poisonous  exhalations,  laden  with  disease  and 
death.  A  majority  of  the  houses  contain  several  families,  and  some  of  them 
have  no  less  than  nine  or  ten.  Even  the  cellars  of  the  houses  are  often 
inhabited,  and  in  some  instances  one  cellar  leads  to  another,  and  this  to  a 
third,  a  sort  of  dungeon,  all  inhabited  by  human  beings  of  both  sexes  and 
every  age.  The  population  of  these  three  streets  is  2813,  of  whom  2738 
are  foreigners  and  only  75  Americans.  The  mortality  was  one  in  17.6  of 
the  population,  or  5.65  per  cent,  and  this  was  a  year  (1850)  remarkable 
for  its  healthiness.  What  it  would  have  been  in  a  sickly  year,  we  dare  not 
conjecture. 

"  We  Avere  at  first  inclined  to  regard  these  figures  as  an  exaggeration," 
adds  the  above  writer.     "  We  could  not  believe  that  a  portion  of  Boston  is 


AT  PRESENT  AND  HERETOFORE.  43 

annually  almost  decimated  of  its  population.     But  a  careful  re-examination 
has  confirmed  the  accuracy  of  the  statement."* 

Notwithstanding  these  evils,  the  immigrant  is  generally  much  better 
provided  for  upon  his  arrival  in  the  United  States  at  the  present  time  than 
formerly. 

'  The  sufferings  attendant  on  immigration  to  America  are  believed  to  be 
now  much  less  than  they  were  in  the  earlier  periods  of  its  history.  The  fa 
cilities  and  safety  of  navigating  the  ocean  have  been  vastly  increased  since 
the  first  settlement  of  the  country.  This  continent  and  the  European  have, 
by  the  rapidity,  frequency  and  regularity  of  communication,  been  compara 
tively  made  one  country.  Now-a-days,  the  European  emigrants,  as  soon  as 
they  arrive  at  these  shores,  have  stopping  places  filled  with  an  abundance 
of  the  necessaries  of  life  ;  and  when  want  or  sickness  befal  them,  as  is  often 
the  case,  the  charitable  institutions  are  opened  to  soothe  their  sufferings,  and 
often  the  hand  of  individual  charity  is  extended  to  them  in  a  manner  to 
touch  their  hearts  with  emotions  of  gratitude.  But  in  the  time  of  our  fathers, 
no  white  man  welcomed  their  coming,  no  smiling  villages  cheered  their 
hearts,  and,  as  they  advanced  to  the  places  of  their  settlement,  they  found 
nothing  but  a  wilderness  and  wild  beasts,  and  what  was  often  worse  than 
wild  beasts — the  savages.  And  now  the  emigrant,  if  he  plants  himself  down 
in  the  wild  lands  of  America,  has  the  conveniences  of  an  easy  transportation, 
and  is  furnished  at  every  step  of  his  path  with  an  abundance  flowing  from  a 
bountiful  soil  and  laid  up  by  an  industrious  and  frugal  people.  We  have 
not  the  means  at  hand  of  showing  distinctly  and  exactly  the  comparative 
distresses ;  but  if  the  subject  were  fully  inquired  into,  we  have  no  doubt  but 
that  the  sufferings  and  mortality  of  immigrants  to  America  are  now  very 
much  less  than  they  were  formerly  ;  and  we  regard  this  as  one  of  the  evi 
dences  of  improvement  in  the  condition  of  mankind. "f 

*  North  Am.  Rev.,  No.  OLII.,  July,  1851,  pp.  121-2.  t  Chickcring's  Immigration,  p.  63. 


44  CONDITION    OF   IMMIGRANTS. 

What  will  be  the  ultimate  moral  and  physical  effect  of  this  immense 
tide  of  emigration  none  can  determine.  Mr.  Chickering  thus  sums  up  his 
reasoning  concerning  it : — 

"  This  migration  of  masses,  numbering  of  late  years  more  than  one 
hundred  thousand  annually,  now  nearly  three  hundred  thousand  annually, 
not  in  the  warlike  spirit  of  the  Goths  and  Vandals  who  overran  the  Roman 
empire,  and  destroyed  the  monuments  of  art,  and  the  evidences  of  civiliza 
tion,  but  in  the  spirit  of  peace,  anxious  to  provide  for  themselves  and  their 
children  the  necessaries  of  life,  and  apparently  ordained  by  Providence  to 
relieve  the  countries  of  the  old  world  and  to  serve  great  purposes  of  good 
to  mankind, — is  one  of  the  most  interesting  spectacles  the  world  ever  saw. 
This  movement  is  to  go  on  till  the  western  continent  is  filled  with  inhabi 
tants.  The  future  destiny  of  these  States  none  can  tell ;  every  accession  of 
new  comers  introduces  new  elements  of  moral  and  political  power  into  the 
community,  besides  the  insensible  changes  which  are  constantly  taking  place. 
If  past  experience  has  shown  the  result  of  this  immigration  to  America  to 
have  been  a  modification  of  our  institutions  and  manners  from  year  to  year, 
do  not  the  signs  of  the  times  indicate  some  danger  of  important  changes 
in  the  very  structure  of  society,  as  the  current  becomes  more  and  more 
swollen  in  consequence  of  the  facilitated  means  of  conveyance,  and  of  the 
multiplied  necessities  of  emigrating." 


RELATIVE   PROPORTION   OF  BIRTHS. 


45 


CHAPTER  V. 


BIRTHS. 


The  number  of  births  according  to  the  census  returns  for  1850,  occur 
ring  among  the  white  and  free  colored  population  for  the  year  preceding 
the  enumeration  was  548,837,  being  2.75  to  every  100  persons,  distributed 
as  follows : 


States  and  Territories. 

Births. 

Ratio  per  cent. 

States  and  Territories. 

Births. 

Ratio  per  cent. 

12,265 
5,483 
273 
1,248 
7,646 
2,495 
1,322 
15,239 
26,681 
82,296 

e.ngg 

23,8115 
7,292 
13,995 
14,036 
23,192 
10,898 
8.687 
19,632 

2.86 
3.3f. 
0.29 
2.60 
2.06 
2.80 
2.75 
2.90 
3.18 
3.27 
3.17 
8.09 
2.67 
2.40 
2.85 
2.33 
2.74 
2.93 
3.30 

6,111 
13556 

1.92 

2.77 
2.46 
2.87 
2.87 
2.78 
2.45 
2.83 
8.02 
3.09 
2.10 
2.65 
8.41 
2.77 
2.00 
2.88 
8.80 

New  York  

76,837 
16,648 
56,884 
64,381 
3,610 
6,607 
28,090 
4,765 
6,694 
25,158 
10,424 
168 
1,238 
310 
432 

Columbia,  District  of.  .  .  . 

North  Carolina  

Ohio.  .  .  . 

Pennsylvania  

Khode  Island         .  . 

Texas  

"Wisconsin  

1  Minnesota  .  .  . 
New  Mexico.  . 

Utah... 

Total  

548,837 

2.75 

This  table  exhibits  a  great  disparity  in  the  productiveness  of  the  dif 
ferent  populations  of  the  various  States.  While  in  the  Territory  of  Utah, 
under  the  influence  of  its  peculiar  institutions,  the  ratio  is  3.80  per  cent., 
in  California  it  dwindles  down  to  the  insignificant  one  of  0.29  per  cent. 

In  this  connection,  the  proportion  which  the  females  bear  to  the  males, 


46 


RELATIVE    PROPORTION    OF   BIRTHS 


and  the  ages  of  the  former,  is  important.  These  proportions  are  here 
given.  For  every  hundred  males  there  are  in  the  different  States,  of  the 
ages  mentioned,  the  following  number  of  females  :— 


States  and  Territories. 

20  and  un 
der  30. 

30  and  un 
der  40. 

40  and  un 
der  50. 

States  and  Territories. 

20  and  nn- 
der  80. 

30  and  un 
der  40. 

40  and  un 
der  50. 

98  2 

84.  G 

85.8 

85.7 

75.0 

77.1 

87.1 

73.8 

74.3 

New  Hampshire  

102  5 

103.3 

103.8 

3.5 

4.5 

0.0 

102.2 

95.5 

93.9 

112.1 

97.0 

99.1 

99.8 

91.1 

88  9 

99.4 

96.7 

101.6 

North  Carolina  

107.8 

108.2 

107.9 

99.7 

97.3 

94.9 

Ohio  

94.1 

88.8 

87.4 

78.0 

65  9 

67.9 

98.7 

92.3 

91.6 

97.0 

90.9 

92.4 

Rhode  Island  

103.6 

98.6 

105.5 

88.8 

79.1 

80.5 

101.5 

98.3 

100.2 

92  5 

86.7 

90.9 

100.7 

98.4 

101.2 

93.6 

76.7 

76.6 

Texas  

74.8 

60.6 

62.9 

92.5 

85.2 

88.7 

93.4 

97.4 

95.9 

79.9 

54.8 

64.4 

100.0 

97.0 

96.2 

93  8 

93.5 

94.9 

82.5 

71.4 

72.6 

95.0 

90.5 

92.0 

"I  Minnesota.  .  .  . 

48.9 

34.8 

45.1 

106.4 

96.6 

99.8 

Terri-  1  New  Mexico.  . 

99.1 

80.8 

82.3 

89  7 

81.9 

76.2 

33.7 

40.6 

47.0 

86.9 

74.5 

77.1 

J  Utah  

70.4 

78.6 

78.7 

This  table  furnishes  a  very  satisfactory  solution  why  a  wide  difference 
in  births  should  exist  between  Utah  and  California,  the  proportion  of  females 
of  an  age  to  adapt  them  for  child-bearing  being  large  in  the  former,  while 
it  is  insignificant  in  the  latter.  In  Utah,  there  are  101  females  between  the 
ages  of  15  and  20,  70  between  20  and  30,  78.5  between  30  and  40,  and 
78.7  between  40  and  50,  to  every  one  hundred  males;  while  in  Califor 
nia,  there  are  but  19.1  between  15  and  20,  3.5  between  20  and  30,  4.5  be 
tween  30  and  40,  and  6  between  40  and  50,  to  each  one  hundred  males. 

A  comparison  of  Utah,  however,  with  some  other  sections  of  the  Union, 
as  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  the  States  of  Massachusetts,  New  Hamp 
shire,  North  Carolina  and  Tennessee,  shows  it  to  possess  a  considerably  less 
proportional  number  of  females  of  the  ages  above  indicated  than  these 
States.  In  the  District  of  Columbia,  the  relative  number  of  females  included 
in  these  ages  is  greater  than  in  any  other  portion  of  the  United  States. 


IN    DIFFERENT    STATES.  47 

The  number  of  births  in  the  parts  of  the  Union  above  indicated,  do  not 
by  any  manner  of  means  maintain  a  ratio  corresponding  to  the  number  of 
females;  those  of  the  District  of  Columbia  being  2.60  per  cent. ;  of  Mas 
sachusetts,  2.33;  of  New  Hampshire,  1.92;  of  North  Carolina,  2.87;  and  of 
Tennessee,  3.02. 

The  most  recently  settled  Western  States  appear  to  be  most  prolific. 
Thus,  the  ratio  of  births  in  Arkansas  is  3.36  per  cent.  ;  in  Illinois,  3.13  ;  in 
Indiana,  3.27;  in  Iowa,  3.17;  in  Missouri,  3.30;  in  Wisconsin,  3.41.  This 
difference  is  doubtless  due  to  the  fact  that  a  larger  proportional  number  of 
females  are  joined  in  wedlock,  in  the  Western  than  the  Eastern  States. 
Unfortunately,  the  returns  do  not  give  the  relation  of  the  family  to  its  head, 
and  it  is  consequently  impossible  to  ascertain,  among  other  important  en 
quiries,  the  number  of  those  who  are  living  in  a  single,  married,  or  widowed 
state,  with  any  degree  of  certainty.  The  inference,  however,  that  a  larger 
proportional  number  of  persons  are  married  in  the  Western  than  in  the 
Eastern  States,  is  based  upon  tolerably  authentic  grounds,  and  among  others 
upon  results  of  the  above  table  of  births. 

European  authorities,  when  instituting  a  comparison  into  the  relative 
number  of  births  which  occur  among  their  own  populations,  are  accus 
tomed  to  attach  great  importance  to  the  abundance  or  scantiness  of  the 
crops,  and  more  especially  to  the  wheat  crop,  as  a  cause  for  producing  an 
increased  or  diminished  number  of  births  among  a  given  population.  Mr. 
Milne,  in  his  able  work  on  Annuities,  has  given  a  table  exhibiting  the  pro 
gress  of  the  population  of  Sweden  and  Finland,  and  the  character  of  the 
crops  from  1749  to  1803,  a  period  of  fifty -four  years,  for  the  purpose  of 
illustrating  this  point.  The  table  very  clearly  establishes  that  the  ratio  of 
births  to  that  of  the  population,  was  not  uniform,  and  that  those  years  in 
which  the  least  number  took  place,  were  those  which  followed  a  deficient 
crop. 


48 


PROPORTION    OF   BIRTHS   AFFECTED 


"  It  will  be  observed,"  remarks  Mr.  Milne,  "  that  any  material  reduc 
tion  in  the  price  of  wheat,  is  almost  always  accompanied  by  an .  increase 
both  of  marriages  and  conceptions,  and  by  a  decrease  in  the  number  of 
burials,  consequently  an  increase  in  the  excess  of  births  over  the  deaths. 

"Also,  that  any  material  rise  in  the  price  is  generally  attended  by  a 
corresponding  decrease  in  the  marriages  and  conceptions,  and  by  an  in 
crease  in  the  burials ;  therefore,  by  a  decrease  in  the  excess  of  the  births 
above  the  deaths. 

"  Thus  it  appears,  that  an  increase  in  the  quantity  of  food,  or  in  the 
facility  wherewith  the  laboring  classes  can  obtain  it,  accelerates  the  popula 
tion,  both  by  augmenting  the  actual  fecundity,*  and  diminishing  the  rate  of 
mortality,  and  that  a  scarcity  of  food  retards  the  increase  of  the  people  by 
producing  in  both  ways  opposite  eifects." 

With  the  view  of  further  illustrating  this  proposition,  Mr.  Milne  con 
structed  a  table  of  the  numbers  of  the  marriages,  baptisms,  and  burials  in 
England  and  Wales,  taken  from  the  population  returns,  with  the  price  of 
wheat,  as  given  in  the  Appendix  to  the  Committee  of  the  House  of  Com 
mons,  and  certified  by  the  Receiver  of  Corn  Returns. 

"  This  table  also  shows,  that  an  increase  of  food  increases  the  actual 
fecundity,  not  only  by  promoting  new  marriages,  but  by  rendering  those 
already  contracted  more  prolific.  Thus  : — 


There  were  in 
the  year 

Marriages. 

Conceptions. 

Wh«n  the  price  of 
the  quarter  of 
Wheat  was 

1790 
1792 

70,648 
74,919 

255,508 
264,028 

£2  13     2 
2     2   11 

Differences  .  . 

4,271 

8,520 

£0  10     8 

*  By  the  actual  fecundity,  that  part  only  of  the  absolute  physical  power  of  propagation  is  here 
to  be  understood  which  the  actual  circumstances  allow  of  being  developed." 


BY  FAVORABLE    AND   UNFAVORABLE  SEASONS. 


49 


^  hereby  it  appears  that  a  fall  of  10s.  3d.  in  the  price  of  the  quarter 
of  wheat  was  attended  by  an  increase  of  4,271  in  the  number  of  the  annual 
marriages,  while  the  annual  conceptions  were  augmented  by  nearly  twice 
that  number.  Again— 


Ther«  were  In 
the  year 

Marriages. 

Conceptions. 

When  the  price  of 
the  quarter  of 
Wheat  was 

1795 
1797 

C>8,839 
74,997 

256,781 
270,535 

£3   14     a 
2  13     1 

Differences  .  . 

6,158 

18,754 

£1     1     1 

Where  the  increase  of  the  conceptions,  accompanying  the  fall  of 
wheat,  was  more  than  double  that  of  the  marriages.* 

The  reliability  of  the  facts  adduced  by  Mr.  Milne,  and  the  correctness 
of  the  reasoning  based  upon  them,  when  applied  to  the  populous  communi 
ties  of  the  Old  World,  do  not  admit  of  question.  They  cannot,  however,  be 
applied  with  equal  force  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  New,  and  especially  to 
that  portion  embraced  within  the  limits  of  the  United  States,  because,  as  it 
has  been  already  stated,  the  crops  are  never  so  short  in  any  part  of  the 
Union  as  to  prove  a  cause  of  serious  distress  to  the  inhabitants. 

But  notwithstanding  the  fact,  that  there  is  no  portion  of  the  Union 
where  labor  is  not  repaid  by  a  sufficient  remuneration  to  procure  an  ample 
supply  of  food,  yet  the  facility  of  obtaining  this  in  the  newly-settled  States, 
is  so  much  greater  than  in  the  older,  more  especially  where  they  contain 
populous  cities,  as  to  produce  a  decided  impression  upon  the  population 
which  inhabits  them. 

Even  among  the  humbler  classes,  who,  by  their  numbers,  exercise  a 
preponderating  influence  over  the  movements  of  population,  and  among 


*  Milne  on  Annuities,  p.  390. 


50  EFFECT   OF    GENEROUS   DIET   IN 

whom  adventitious  wants  may  be  easily  laid  aside,  the  assumption  of  the 
burden  of  a  family  becomes  a  subject  of  much  more  serious  consideration 
in  the  older  States,  where  a  large  part  of  their  earnings  must  necessarily  be 
expended  in  their  maintenance,  than  in  the  new,  where  the  necessaries  of 
life  can  be  obtained  upon  the  most  reasonable  terms. 

A  very  natural  effect  of  these  causes,  is  to  increase  the  number  of  mar 
riages  in  the  new  States,  and  to  render  those  already  contracted  more  pro 
lific.  This  deduction  would  lead  us  to  anticipate  that  in  any  population 
returns,  a  larger  number  of  births  would  be  recorded  in  the  new  States 
which  are  affected  by  these  influences,  than  in  the  old,  where  their  effect  is 
either  not  felt,  or  if  so,  in  a  diminished  degree. 

It  has  been  asserted  that  misery  tends  to  the  contraction  of  frequent 
and  reckless  marriages,  and  consequently  serves  to  swell  the  number  of 
births.  Ireland  is  often  cited  in  illustration  of  the  truth  of  this  position. 
A  recent  writer  says  :  "That  the  ignorance  of  artificial  wants  and  the  des 
titute  condition  of  the  Irish,  are  strongly  conducive  to  early  marriages.  As 
a  natural  consequence,  there  is  hardly  a  peasant  of  twenty  who  is  not  married, 
and  invariably  the  greater  the  destitution  of  the  people,  the  greater  is  the 
rapidity  with  which  they  contract  the  marriage  union." 

The  Irish  census  of  1841  includes  the  number  of  married,  unmarried, 
and  widowed  persons  of  each  age ;  and  so  far  from  establishing  the  facts 
above  enunciated  with  such  apparent  confidence,  proves  that  the  number 
of  persons  above  the  age  of  fifteen  who  are  unmarried  in  Ireland,  is  greater 
in  proportion  than  in  any  country  from  which  returns  have  been  made,  thus 
confirming  the  position  established  by  Nicander,  Wargentin,  Messance,  and 
Milne,  and  other  early  statisticians,  that  the  increase  in  the  number  of 
births  is  inseparably  associated  with  a  good  harvest  and  a  consequently  fair 
supply  of  food,  and  that  the  reverse  of  these  conditions  tends  to  a  diminu 
tion  of  their  number. 


INCREASING    THE    RATIO    OF    BIRTHS. 


51 


In  Ireland,  where,  even  before  the  taking  of  the  census  of  1841,  plen 
tiful  harvests  had  for  many  years  been  far  from  frequent,  and  after 
proved  the  exception  rather  than  the  rule,  a  large  proportion  of  unmarried 
persons  might  be  expected.  The  annexed  tables,  taken  from  the  Registrar- 
General's  Report,  furnish  important  data  upon  this  point :— 


MEN. 

Ages. 

Unmarried. 

Married. 

Widowers. 

Total. 

17-20 
2C-36 
36-46 
46-56 
56 

633,753 
235,589 
(53,358 
29,176 
25,864 

55,407 
310,492 
824,187 
234,110 
217,811 

669 
6,335 
13,914 
22,649 

68,  llll 

689,829 
562,416 
401,459 
285,835 
311,836 

17  and  upwards 

987,740 

1,142,007 

111,628 

2,241,376 

17-46 

932,700 

690,086 

20,918 

1,643,704 

WOMEN. 

Women  aged  15-45. 

Estimated  numbers 

in  1-41. 

Number  who  bore 
children  in 
1S42. 

Proportion  of  child 
ren  registered  to 
100  women. 

Women  to  one 
birth  nearl/ 

Married  

1  733,576 

489  849 

,  -4  >• 

2S.8 

4 

Unmarried  .... 

2,078,078. 

35,294 

1.7 

59 

By  this  report  it  appears  that  of  the  689,829  males,  between  the  ages 
of  17  and  2G,  but  54,407  were  married,  and  633,753  were  unmarried, — thus 
disproving  in  the  clearest  manner  the  general  allegation,  that  in  this  im 
poverished  country  the  rule  is  to  contract  early  marriages.  Of  the  entire 
male  population,  between  the  ages  of  17  and  46,  amounting  to  1,643,704, 
but  690,086  were  married. 

Among  the  female  portion  of  the  population,  between  15  and  45  years, 
numbering  3,811,654,  but  1,733,576,  or  45.48  per  cent,  of  those  whose 
age  fitted  them  for  procreation,  were  married. 


52  CONDITION    OF    THE    IRISH 

It  would  be  extremely  desirable  to  ascertain  the  absolute  effect  pro 
duced  by  migration  from  one  county  to  another,  and  especially  from  one 
where  the  means  of  obtaining  a  livelihood  Avere  precarious,  to  another, 
where  they  could  be  readily  obtained.  It  unfortunately  happens  that  here 
the  census  returns  afford  but  slight  information,  and  even  the  registration 
reports  of  the  several  States  do  not  appear  to  cover  this  ground. 

Nothing  is  more  marked  than  the  change  in  the  habits  of  the  Irish 
people,  in  relation  to  their  food  upon  their  arrival  in  this  country.  Dr. 
Wilde,  in  his  "  Table  of  Deaths."  which  accompanied  the  census  of  Ireland, 
of  1851,  states,  "  that  the  blight  which  recently  fell  upon  the  potato,  pro 
duced  a  deadly  famine,  because  the  people  had  cultivated  it  so  extensively, 
and  were  accustomed  to  its  use  almost  exclusively,  and  when  it  failed 
millions  became  as  utterly  destitute  as  if  the  island  were  incapable  of  pro 
ducing  any  other  species  of  sustenance."  There  are  few,  in  the  United 
States,  who  do  not  so  far  abandon  the  exclusive  use  of  the  potato,  to  which 
they  were  accustomed  at  home,  as  to  make  it  an  inconsiderable  part  of  their 
ordinary  meals,  which  usually  consist  of  an  intermixture  of  animal  and 
vegetable  food,  of  which  latter  the  potato,  it  is  true,  forms  a  chief  ingre 
dient.  Bread  is  likewise  partaken  of  freely  by  them,  and  is  as  extensively 
used  among  the  Irish  as  among  the  native  population. 

It  is  not  possible  to  conceive  how  a  people,  who  were  so  much  attached 
to  the  use  of  the  potato,  that  a  revolution  in  diet  in  this  respect  required 
"  even  more  than  the  stern  necessity  of  want  before  it  could  be  accom 
plished,  or  any  other  description  of  food  made  palatable  to  them,"  should 
so  suddenly  and  generally  have  abandoned  their  ancient  customs  and 
adopted  a  new  diet,  when  the  old  one  was  easily  obtained  at  reasonable  rates. 

A  remarkable  feature  in  the  population  returns  of  Ireland,  is  the  large 
diminution  of  population  which  they  exhibit  between  the  census  of  1841 
and  that  of  1851. 


IN    IRELAND    AND    AMERICA.  53 

According  to  the  returns  of  1841,  there  were  4,019,576  males,  and 
4,155,548  females,  or  8,175,124  inhabitants.  The  returns  of  1851  show 
3,190,506  males,  and  3,361,463  females,  or  6,551,970  inhabitants,  being  a 
decrease  of  1,623,154  inhabitants  in  ten  years. 

Mr.  Thorn,  in  his  Statistics  of  Ireland,  thus  accounts  for  this  deficiency  : 
"  The  emigration  of  the  United  Kingdom  during  the  last  five  years 
gives  an  annual  average  of  284,534  persons.  If  this  emigration  be  analyzed, 
the  results  as  regards  Ireland  will  be  much  more  striking.  The  decrease  in 
the  population  of  Ireland  between  1841  and  1851  was  1,623,154.  Assuming 
that  nine-tenths  of  the  emigration  from  Liverpool  during  those  ten  years 
was  Irish,  and  adding  thereto  the  emigration  direct  from  Ireland  and  in 
ships  chartered  by  the  Land  and  Emigration  Commissioners,  we  have  the 
following  result : — 

Nine-tenths  of  emigration  from  Liverpool  813,844 

Emigration  direct  from  Ireland   441,237 

Irish  in  ships  chartered  by  the  Land  and  Emigration  Board        34,052 


Total  Irish  emigration  in  the  10  years  1,289,133 

or  more  than  three-fourths  of  the  whole  decrease. 

"  In  regard  to  the  emigration  of  1851,  the  Emigration  Officer  at  Glas 
gow  states  that  of  14,435  emigrants  who  sailed  from  the  Clyde  to  America, 
about  one-third  were  Irish.  Proceeding  then  in  regard  to  other  places  on 
the  same  estimate,  we  should  assume  the  Irish  emigration  of  1851  to  have 
been— 

Nine-tenths  emigrants  from  Liverpool  185,414 

Emigrants  direct  from  Ireland  62,350 

One-third  from  Glasgow 4,811 

Emigrants  to  Australia  in  ships  chartered  by  the  Land  and 

Emigration  Commissioners 4,797 

Making  a  total  of 257,372 


54  CONDITION    OP   THE   IRISH 

"  By  the  census  return,  the  population  of  Ireland,  on  the  31st  March, 
1851,  amounted  to  6,551,970.  Assuming  that  this  population  were  in 
creased  by  births  at  the  rate  of  one  per  cent,  per  annum,  which  (taking 
into  account  the  emigration)  was  the  rate  of  increase  between  1831  and 
1841,  it  would  give  an  annual  addition  of  only  65,157.  The  emigration, 
therefore,  of  1851,  while  it  nearly  doubled  the  estimated  average  emigra 
tion  of  the  preceding  ten  years,  exceeded  any  probable  increase  of  the 
population  by  nearly  4  to  1.  But  this  calculation,  unfavorable  as  it  appears, 
is  clearly  below  the  truth ;  for  the  classes  that  emigrate  include  a  large  pro 
portion  of  the  youngest,  the  healthiest,  and  most  energetic  of  the  adult 
population,  on  which  the  excess  of  births  over  deaths  mainly  depends.  We 
should  be  disposed  to  believe  that  those  who  remain,  including  an  unusual 
proportion  of  the  old,  the  most  feeble,  and  most  destitute,  do  not  at  the 
most  do  more  than  replace,  by  births,  their  losses  by  deaths.  If  so,  it  would 
follow  that  the  annual  decrease  of  the  population  in  Ireland  is  not  less  than 
the  annual  amount  of  the  emigration,  and  that  unless  the  emigration  be  soon 
arrested,  the  country  will  be  deserted  by  its  original  population.  The 
Colonial  Land  and  Emigration  Commissioners,  in  their  twelfth  report,  state, 
that  they  do  not  believe  that 

" '  The  emigration  will  be  arrested  by  anything  short  of  a  great  improve 
ment  in  the  position  of  the  laboring  population  in  Ireland  ;  all  those  obstacles  which 
in  ordinary  cases  would  be  opposed  to  so  wholesale  an  emigration  appear  in  the  case 
of  the  Irish  to  be  smoothed  away.  The  misery  which  they  have  for  many  years 
endured  has  destroyed  the  attachment  to  their  native  soil ;  the  numbers  who  have 
already  emigrated  and  prospered  remove  the  apprehension  of  going  to  a  strange  and 
untried  country,  while  the  want  of  means  is  remedied  by  the  liberal  contributions  of 
their  relations  and  friends  who  have  preceded  them.  The  contributions  so  made, 
either  in  the  form  of  pre-paid  passages  or  of  money  sent  home,  and  which  are  almost 
exclusively  provided  by  the  Irish,  were  returned  to  us,  as  in 


IN    IRELAND    AND    AMERICA. 


55 


1848,  upwards  of £460,000 

1849 540,000 

1850 957,000 

and  1851 990,000 

"  '  And  although  it  is  probable  that  all  the  money  included  in  these  returns  is  not 
expended  in  emigration,  yet  as  we  have  reason  to  know  that  much  is  sent  home  of 
which  these  returns  show  no  trace,  it  seems  not  unfair  to  assume  that  of  the  money 
expended  in  Irish  emigration  in  each  of  the  last  four  years  a  very  large  proportion 
was  provided  from  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic.'  " 

This  large  emigration,  together  with  the  increased  mortality  induced 
by  the  famine,  which  reached  its  culminating  point  in  1847,  affords  a  satis 
factory  solution  for  this  remarkable  deficiency — a  large  proportion  of  what 
Ireland  has  thus  lost  in  population,  the  United  States  appears  to  have 
gained. 

The  city  of  Boston  has  classified  the  nativities  of  the  parents  of  the 
children  born  within  its  jurisdiction.  From  the  returns  of  the  City  Regis 
trar,  for  1855,  the  following  table  was  compiled  :  — 


Birthplaces  of  Parents. 

Fathers. 

Mothers. 

Birthplaces  of  Parents. 

Fathers. 

Mothers. 

869 

430 

78 

69 

Massachusetts  (out  of  Boston)  

4fi7 

408 

3,019 

3  2H1 

288 

330 

34 

23 

251 

190 

Spain  and  Portugal   

4 

4 

89 

62 

346 

273 

26 

28 

221 

252 

13 

28 

54 

29 

184 

122 

162 

137 

221 

165 

Totals  

:.,7.;'; 

5,7f,c, 

This  table  exhibits  a  very  large  proportion  of  births  among  the  foreign 
population — the  greater  number  of  which  were  of  Irish  parentage,  3,019 
fathers,  and  3,231  mothers,  or  50.30  per  cent,  of  the  whole  being  emigrants 
from  that  country.  The  census  of  1855  makes  the  entire  population  of 


56  INCREASE    OF    BIRTHS. 

Boston  162,748  ;   which,  with  the  ratio  of  births,  is  distributed  in  Wards, 
as  follows  :— 

Wards.  Population.  Births.                 Ratio. 

1 19,264  764  as  1  to  25.21 

II 15,963  715  "  1  "  22.32 

HI 13,175  469  "  1  «  28.09 

IV 7,912  123  "  1  "  64.32 

V 10,428  340  "  1  "  30.67 

VI 11,597  266  "  1  "  43.60 

VII 18,430  750  "  1  "  24.57 

VIH 12,690  434  "  1  "  29.24 

IX 9,541  308  "  1  "  30.97 

X 12,553  445  "  1  "  28.20 

XI 13,264  511  "  1  "  25.96 

XII 17,931  691  «  1  "  25.95 


162,748  5,816 

When  compared  with  the  returns  of  the  Irish  census,  as  just  noticed, 
these  statistics  lead  to  the  irresistible  conclusion,  that  notwithstanding  the 
incidents  of  bad  air,  crowded  lodgings,  and  the  privations  attendant  upon 
emigration  among  the  poor,  the  physical  condition  of  this  people  is  so 
altered  by  emigration,  as  to  render  them  much  more  prolific  in  this  country 
than  in  their  own.  A  high  degree  of  prosperity  however  is  not  always  evi 
denced  by  a  great  increase  of  births,  because,  among  the  poor  it  frequently 
occurs  that  excessive  mortality  among  infants,  by  relieving  the  mothers  of 
their  charge,  predisposes  to  an  increase  of  births.  In  instituting  a  compari 
son,  therefore,  the  rate  of  mortality  among  the  young  as  well  as  the  number 
of  births  should  be  taken  into  consideration. 

How  much  the  habits  of  the  Irish  population  of  Boston  predisposes  to 
infantile  mortality  may  be  gleaned  from  a  knowledge  of  the  localities  they 
inhabit.  The  largest  number  of  Irish  are  to  be  found  in  Ward  No.  8,  of  the 
old  division.  "  This  section  of  the  city  contains  the  least  number  of  inhab- 


AMONG    THE    FOREIGN    POPULATION.  57 

ited  houses,  and  at  the  same  time  the  greatest  number  of  persons  to  a  house, 
there  being  an  avarage  21.18  individuals  to  each  house.  Two  houses  in  the 
ward  contain  19  families  each;  five  houses  were  occupied  by  10  families 
each ;  fourteen  by  9  families  each  ;  thirty-two  by  8 ;  and  fifty -six  by  7 
families  each." 

Most  of  the  apartments  thus  occupied  are  illy  ventilated,  and  many  are 
underground  or  cellar  dwellings,  where  the  needy  occupants  in  addition  to 
a  depraved  air,  are  subjected  to  the  evils  incident  to  poverty  which,  under 
the  best  circumstances,  is  accompanied  by  its  train  of  privations. 

From  these  facts  it  is  reasonable  to  conclude,  that  the  infantile  mor 
tality  in  this  ward  is  much  greater  than  in  those  portions  of  the  city  where 
the  inhabitants  are  better  provided  with  airy  and  wholesome  dwellings.  As 
will  hereafter  be  seen,  the  early  mortality  of  children  of  foreign  parentage 
greatly  exceeds  that  occurring  among  those  born  of  native  parents,  and 
largely  contributes  to  swell  the  infantile  mortality,  which  characterizes  the 
mortuary  records  of  the  chief  towns  in  the  United  States. 


L  I  i'»  K  A  it  \ 

UNJ  VKK.SITV   OK 

CALIFORNIA 


58  RECORD   OF    BIRTHS 


CHAPTER  VI. 

RECORD    OF    BIRTHS   IN    THE    SEVERAL    STATES. 

The  reports  of  Massachusetts  which  now  contain  the  results  of  up 
wards  of  fourteen  years  of  registration,  furnish  very  authoritative  data,  so 
far  as  the  movements  of  population  in  that  State  are  concerned.  They 
reflect  high  credit  upon  the  State  under  whose  auspices  they  were  pro 
duced,  and  the  gentlemen  engaged  in  their  elaboration.  These  reports 
furnish  conclusive  evidence  of  the  manner  in  which  the  population  is 
affected  by  a  large  increase  of  foreign  immigration,  and  its  diffusion  among 
its  population.  Of  all  the  births  and  marriages  which  have  occurred  since 
1849,  in  Boston,  Lowell,  Fall  River,  Lawrence,  and  perhaps  other  populous 
towns,  the  proportion  of  the  foreign  to  the  native,  has  been  as  two  of  the 
former  to  one  of  the  latter. 

The  ratio  of  increase  has  steadily  been  in  favor  of  the  foreign  births. 
The  counties  most  affected  in  this  particular  are  those  within  whose  limits 
are  centered  most  of  the  manufacturing  establishments  of  the  State,  which 
are  very  numerous,  and  give  employment  to  a  large  number  of  workmen. 
In  these  establishments,  in  one  capacity  or  another,  employment  is  obtained 
by  a  large  number  of  persons  of  foreign  birth,  and  hence  the  influence  exer 
cised  over  the  movements  of  population.  In  those  rural  districts  where 


IX   MASSACHUSETTS.  59 

manufacturing  establishments  do  not  exist,  this  influence  is  not  felt.  Thus, 
in  the  three  counties  of  Barnstable,  Dukes  and  Nantucket,  which  are  essen 
tially  agricultural,  the  foreign  population  does  not  exceed  ten  per  cent,  of 
the  whole. 

The  ultimate  effect  of  this  extensive  immigration  upon  the  future  con 
dition  of  the  State,  considered  in  a  social  or  political  point  of  view,  how 
ever  interesting  to  the  political  economist,  lies  beyond  the  limits  of  the 
present  enquiry,  which  is  necessarily  confined  to  its  effect  upon  the  increase 
or  decrease  of  population,  and  the  influence  it  exercises  in  elevating  or 
depressing  its  physical  standard. 

The  first  registration  report  of  Rhode  Island  gives  the  following  as  the 
number  of  births  which  occurred  in  the  year  ending  31st  May,  1853.  Of 
American  parentage,  874.  Foreign,  663.  Unknown,  322.  Total,  1859. 
Of  which  1810  were  white  and  49  colored. 

The  entire  population  of  the  State  in  1850,  was  147,549.  A  large 
number  of  districts  failed  to  make  the  necessary  returns,  deducting  those 
which  failed  from  the  population,  it  would  leave  96,373  as  the  portion 
among  whom  the  1859  births  occurred  which  have  been  recorded,  being  1 
to  51.84  of  the  inhabitants.  The  census  returns  estimate  3,610  as  the  num 
ber  of  births  for  1850,  which  is  a  much  more  probable  number  than  that 
given  by  the  State  authorities. 

The  second  and  third  Registration  Reports  of  this  State  are  much  more 
exact  and  reliable  than  the  first.  The  number  of  births,  according  to  these 
returns,  in 

1853  was  1793 

1854  "   2105 

1855  "  2926 

"  We  cannot,"  adds  the  report,  "  estimate  accurately  the  proportion  of 


60  RECORD    OF    BIRTHS 

births  to  population.  The  city  of  Providence  stands  in  this  respect  on  a 
wholly  different  footing  from  other  places,  the  city  being  canvassed  for  this 
particular  purpose,  by  inquiries  from  house  to  house.  The  births  for  1855 
were  ascertained  in  January,  1856.  The  average  monthly  number  was  133, 
or  nearly  twenty  in  a  month  more  than  were  reported  in  previous  years. 
They  were  one  to  every  thirty  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  city,  by  the  census 
of  1855. 

"  In  the  city  of  Providence,  there  were  720  children  born  in  the  first 
six  months  of  the  year,  and  880  in  the  last  six  months.  This  difference  is 
wholly  in  the  births  of  children  of  foreign  parentage.  '  The  children  of 
American  parents  born  were,  during  the  first  six  months,  319,  and  during  the 
last  six  months,  320,  showing  no  difference  of  any  consequence  in  the  sea 
sons  ;  while  the  children  born  of  foreign  parents,  were  358  during  the  first, 
and  497  during  the  last  six  months  of  the  year, — a  difference  of  139.  The 
children  of  mixed  parentage  are  omitted.'  This  difference  is  ascribed  to 
the  depressed  condition  of  public  health  during  a  large  part  of  the  year 
1854,  in  the  summer  months  of  which  there  was  a  great  increase  of  mor 
tality,  mostly  from  cholera.  This  increased  mortality  was  almost  confined 
to  the  foreign  population.  '  We  have  in  this  fact  another  illustration  of  the 
disastrous  effects  of  an  epidemic  upon  the  prosperity  of  a  community,  and 
of  the  importance  of  sanitary  precautions.  An  epidemic  not  only  destroys 
the  lives  of  the  people,  but  also  reduces  the  number  of  children  born.' 

"  In  other  parts  of  the  State,  there  were  but  sixty  more  births  reported 
as  occurring  in  the  last  than  in  the  first  six  months  of  the  year. 

"  The  parentage  of  children  born  is  exhibited,  in  the  tables  for  1854 
and  1855,  in  a  somewhat  different  manner  from  that  which  was  adopted 
previously.  The  cases  of  '  mixed '  parentage, — -where  one  parent  was  Ame 
rican,  and  the  other  foreign — are  distinguished  from  others.  We  will  show, 
in  a  concise  form,  the  births  for  these  two  years  arranged  under  three  heads, 


IN    RHODE   ISLAND. 


61 


American,  Foreign,  and  Mixed.     Those  of  unknown  parentage  are  omitted 
in  casting  the  percentages  : — 


American. 

Foreign. 

Miied. 

Unknown. 

ToUl. 

No. 

Percent. 

No. 

Per  cent. 

No. 

Per  cent. 

No. 

No. 

Per  cent. 

Bristol  County  

238 
168 
477 
328 
1266 
132 

75.08 
70.29 
77.56 
62.71 
42.83 
80.00 

57 
60 
113 
181 
1512 
29 

17.98 
25.11 
18.37 
34.61 
51.15 
17.58 

22 
11 
25 
14 
178 
4 

6.94 

4.60 
4.07 
2.68 
6.02 
2.42 

65 
50 
24 
60 
5 
12 

382 
289 
639 
583 
2961 
177 

100.00 
100.00 
100.00 
100.00 
100.00 
100.00 

Kent  County  

Newport  County  .... 
Towns  of  Prov.  Co.  .  . 
Providence  City  

Washington  County.  . 
Whole  State  

2609 

54.18 

1952 

40.54 

254 

5.28 

216 

5031 

100.00 

"  It  may  be  desirable  to  compare  the  proportions  for  the  two  years 
together,  and  also  with  the  results  obtained  in  Massachusetts  within  a  few 
years  past,  which  will  be  seen  to  correspond  very  closely  with  our  own :— 


Rhode 

Island. 

Massachusetts. 

1854. 

1865. 

1858-1854. 

64  71 

53  82 

54  53 

40.59 

40  50 

40  63 

4  70 

6.68 

4  84 

Total  

100.00 

100.00 

100.00 

"  The  proportion  of  births  of  purely  foreign  parentage  in  Rhode  Island 
is  almost  precisely  the  same  in  the  two  years ;  but  there  is  an  increase  of 
about  one  per  cent,  in  the  ratio  of  mixed  parentages.  Of  these,  124  in  the 
two  years  were  of  American  fathers  and  foreign  mothers,  and  130  were  the 
converse.  In  the  two  years  taken  together,  the  births  of  American  father 
and  foreign  mother,  form  2.58  per  cent.,  those  of  foreign  father  and  Ameri 
can  mother  form  2.70  per  cent,  of  the  whole  number. 


62  RELATIVE   PROPORTION    OF    BIRTHS 

"  As  stated  in  our  former  report,  the  births  of  foreign  parentage  are  in 
much  higher  proportion  than  were  the  foreign-born  population,  at  the  time 
of  the  last  census.  In  1850,  the  foreign-born  inhabitants  were  not  quite 
one-sixth  of  all  in  the  State, — 16.17  to  100.  In  the  years  1854  and  1855, 
the  children  born  of  foreign  parentage  were  full  two-fifths  (40.54  to  100) 
of  all  those  born  in  the  State,  whose  parentage  was  reported.  This  great 
difference  is  almost  exactly  the  same  as  mentioned  in  our  last  report.  It  is 
probably  made  up  of  two  elements,  the  increased  proportion  of  foreign-born 
inhabitants  since  1850,  and  their  being  actually  more  productive  for  their 
number.  This  last  circumstance  may  depend  in  part  on  physical  and  social 
differences ;  and  in  part  on  the  higher  proportion  of  individuals  in  the  early 
adult  age.  Such  a  characteristic  may  be  expected  among  a  class  formed  by 
large  immigration  of  persons  of  both  sexes. 

"The  births  of  foreign  parentage  in  1854  and  1855,  were  in  higher 
ratio  than  the  foreign  inhabitants  in  1850,  in  every  county ;  the  ratio  being 
more  than  twice  as  high  in  Providence  city  and  Washington  county,  and 
more  than  three  times  as  high  in  Kent  county. 

"  In  the  city  of  Providence,  we  can  compare  the  births  of  each  class 
with  the  population  by  the  census  of  1855.  In  so  doing,  we  will  quote 
from  the  City  Registrar's  Report :  '  The  population  of  the  city,  according 
to  parentage,  by  the  census  of  1855,  was,  American,  27,897,  Foreign, 
19,432  ;  but  the  children  born  during  the  same  year,  if  we  put  those  of 
mixed  parentage  according  to  the  birth-place  of  the  father,  were,  American, 
685,  Foreign,  915,  showing  an  excess  of  230  children  of  foreign  parents. 
Comparing  the  births  with  the  population,  the  results  are  asfollows  :— 

American  population. .  58.94  per  cent.     American  children  born. .  42.81  per  cent. 
Foreign  population 41.06  per  cent.     Foreign  children  born 57.19  per  cent.' 


AMONG    NATIVE    AND    FOREIGN    POPULATION.  63 

"  The  births  of  American  parentage  in  the  city  were  one  to  40.7  of  the 
American-born  inhabitants;  the  births  of  foreign  parentage  were  one  in 
21.2  of  the  foreign-born  inhabitants.  The  births  of  mixed  parentage  are 

* 

here  classed  according  to  the  birth-place  of  the  fathers.  It  appears,  then, 
that  in  the  city  of  Providence,  the  imported  population  are  very  nearly 
twice  as  productive,  for  their  number,  as  the  native." 

The  population  of  Rhode  Island  is  largely  engaged  in  manufacturing, 
and  it  is  highly  probable  that  the  same  influences  are  at  work  as  are 
developed  by  the  admirable  statistics  of  Massachusetts,  in  that  State.  The 
percentage  of  foreign  to  the  whole,  is  nearly  16  per  cent,  and  but  little 
short  of  that  of  Massachusetts.  Of  the  entire  foreign  population  of  the 
State,  23,111  in  number,  21,434  are  from  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  15,944 
being  from  Ireland  alone.  The  larger  proportion  of  these  are  centered  in 
towns  and  about  the  manufacturing  establishments. 

The  registration  returns  of  Connecticut  for  six  years,  give  the  number 
of  births  for  each  year  consecutively,  as  follows  : — 


1848   6,850         1850  7,578 

1849  7,238         1851   8,362 


1853   8,302 

1864   8,439 


The  ratio  of  births  to  the  population  in  1850,  was  one  in  each  forty- 
five  of  the  inhabitants.  The  census  returns  estimate  the  number  of  births  in 
1850  at  7,646,  which  varies  but  little  from  the  registration  returns.  No 
record  is  made  of  the  parentage  of  those  who  are  born,  and  consequently 
no  comparison  can  be  instituted. 

From  the  returns  of  New  Jersey,  it  would  appear  that  the  number  of 
births  in  1854  were  less  than  in  1850 — the  census  returns  of  that  year  enume 
rating  13,556  births,  while  the  registration  returns  for  1854,  give  a  total  of 
but  12,602  births  for  that  year.  The  registration  report  does  not  include  the 


64  REASONS  FOR  GREATER  FECUNDITY 

number  of  births  in  the  whole  State,  as  thirty -seven  townships  scattered 
through  the  various  counties  are  noted  as  not  making  any  return  whatever, 
or  omitting  the  number  of  births.  By  deducting  the  population  of  these 
townships  from  that  of  the  whole  State,  a  tolerable  approximation  to  the 
truth  may  be  obtained. 

The  registration  reports  of  Kentucky,  for  1852  and  1853,  which  are 
more  reliable  than  those  of  any  other  State,  except  Massachusetts,  show 
that  the  number  of  births  in  Kentucky  in  1852,  was  25,906,  and  in  1853, 
26,757.  The  number  returned  in  1850,  by  the  census,  was  23,805. 

The  various  statistics  of  births  derived  from  all  sources,  give  an  aggre 
gate  ratio  of  one  birth  to  each  thirty-five  of  the  inhabitants.  That  the 
number  has  been  considerably  under-estimated,  does  not  admit  of  doubt. 
Many  instances  of  carelessness  and  omission  have  already  come  to  light, 
and  how  many  remain  undetected  can  never,  in  all  probability,  be  ascertained. 

There  are  reasons  why  the  United  States  should  exhibit  a  large 
number  of  births,  instead  of  the  small  one  indicated  by  the  returns.  The 
argument  already  adduced,  that  a  plentiful  supply  of  food  and  fecundity, 
go  hand  in  hand,  should  operate  with  peculiar  force,  in  the  case  of  the 
population  of  this  country.  As  its  supply  of  food  is  superabundant,  so 
should  the  increase  of  its  population  by  birth  be  great.  Again,  the  number 
of  children,  under  one  year  of  age,  in  1850,  was  G29,446.  Now,  when  the 
large  number  of  deaths  which  occur  in  the  first  year  are  taken  into  con 
sideration,  it  becomes  obvious  that  a  larger  proportion  of  births  must  have 
occurred  than  are  represented  by  the  records,  in  order  to  admit  of  the  ex 
istence  of  this  population. 

There  are  two  sources  from  which  a  population  may  derive  increase, 
one  by  birth,  and  another  by  immigration.  Allowing  the  full  latitude  to  the 
capacity  of  the  latter,  which  has  been  assigned  to  it  by  Professor  Tucker, 


IN    NEW    THAN    OLD    COUNTRIES. 


(55 


Mr.  Chickering  and  others,  it  still  requires  a  larger  increase  by  births  than 
one  in  thirty-five,  to  account  for  the  increase  of  the  population  of  the  whole 
country,  admitting  the  ratio  of  deaths  to  approximate  the  per  centage  pre 
viously  assigned  to  them. 

The  annual  average  births  in  the  principal  countries  of  Europe  are  de 
tailed  in  the  annexed  table  : — • 


ANNUAL  ] 

IRTHS  TO  100  PER.SO 

•3  LIVING. 

PERSONS  LIVING  TO 

Legitimate. 

Illegitimate. 

Both. 

BIRTH. 

France  

9rg'j<> 

"05 

2  837 

35 

England  

<>  on') 

°16 

3.20S 

31 

Prussia  

3,607 

260 

3,107 

27 

Austria  

3  452 

.422 

3,874 

"ti 

Russia  

4,284 

23 

While  the  number  in  England  reaches  1  in  31,  in  Prussia  1  in  27,  in 
Austria  1  in  26,  and  in  Russia  1  in  23,  there  appears  to  exist  no  cause  why 
in  the  United  States,  Avhere  the  increase  in  population  is  so  much  greater 
than  any  of  these  countries,  the  number  of  births  should  be  but  1  in  35. 

Now  all  those  who  were  under  one  year  of  age,  at  the  taking  of  the 
census  in  1850,  must  have  been  born  within  the  twelve  months  preceding. 
If  to  the  629,446  persons  below  the  age  of  one  year  there  enumerated,  be 
added  twenty  per  cent,  for  loss  by  deaths,  which  corresponds  tolerably 
well  with  the  Massachusetts  returns,  the  number  born  in  that  year  would 
have  been  755,336,  or  one  to  each  thirty  inhabitants,  a  number  nearly  cor 
responding  to  that  of  England,  and  much  more  in  accordance  with  the 
ratio  of  increase  of  population  than  the  estimate  of  births  heretofore  given. 

It  is  rendered  obvious,  by  a  comparison  of  the  relative  proportion  of 
births  in  different  parts  of  the  country,  that  the  same  causes  which  have 
been  found  to  exercise  an  influence  in  the  increase  or  diminution  of  their 


66  BIRTHS    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES. 

numbers  in  other  countries,  operate  with  equal  force  in  this,  and  if  the 
causes  to  which  reference  has  been  made  be  found  to  produce  results  in 
obedience  to  acknowledged  laws,  when  applied  to  a  comparison  of  one 
section  with  another,  there  is  no  reason  for  not  admitting  their  application, 
when  making  a  comparison  of  the  country  with  other  countries  as  a  whole. 

With  the  view  of  ascertaining  the  natural  increase  of  the  whole  popu 
lation  by  birth,  Professor  Tucker  instituted  a  comparison  between  the  white 
females  in  the  several  States,  as  returned  by  each  census,  and  the  number  of 
children  under  ten  years  of  age. 

An  examination  of  the  percentage  of  births  is  given  by  Professor 
Tucker,  while  it  clearly  demonstrates  a  gradual  falling  off  of  the  whole 
number,  as  compared  with  the  existing  population,  at  the  same  time  shows 
a  much  greater  number  than  one  birth  to  each  thirty -five  inhabitants,  after 
making  a  proper  deduction  for  loss  by  deaths  in  the  early  periods  of  life. 
These  results,  so  far  from  exciting  surprise,  are  precisely  what  might  have 
been  anticipated  in  a  new  country  whose  increase  of  population  has  been 
rapid,  and  a  considerable  portion  of  whose  territory  has  within  the  memory 
of  those  now  living  been  converted  from  a  wilderness  into  well  peopled 
districts,  covered  with  cultivated  fields,  and  considerable  towns.  In  the 
earlier  period  of  these  settlements  experience  demonstrates  that  the  number 
of  married  persons  is  more  numerous,  and  the  proportion  of  births  greater, 
than  at  a  later  period,  when  questions  of  prudence  operate  in  retarding 
marriage,  and  diminishing  the  relative  number  of  births. 


PROPORTION    OF    THE    SEXES.  67 


CHAPTER  VII. 

PROPORTION    OF    THE    SEXES    AT    BIRTH. 

The  proportion  of  the  sexes  at  birth  would  appear  to  be  regulated  by 
some  general  law,  which  operates  with  tolerable  uniformity  in  giving  a 
slight  preponderance  to  the  male  over  the  female  births.  Although  this 
proportion  is  nearly  the  same  in  all  countries  and  at  remote  periods  of  time, 
yet  it  is  liable  to  a  slight  variation,  which  manifests  itself  in  every  return  of 
births,  so  that  it  rarely  happens  that  two  returns  exhibit  the  same  relative 
number  of  male  and  female  births. 

The  reason  for  the  want  of  uniformity  in  returns  apparently  collected 
under  like  circumstances,  and  yet  which  approach  so  nearly  as  to  produce 
an  admirable  equipoise  among  the  sexes,  is  among  the  questions  for  which 
no  satisfactory  solution  has  been  offered. 

Dr.  Curtis,  in  the  eighth  registration  report  of  Massachusetts,  has  given 
a  table  comprising  the  number  of  births  which  occurred  in  that  common 
wealth,  for  the  live  years  intervening  between  January  1st,  1845,  and 
January  1st,  1850,  with  the  months  in  which  they  took  place,  and  the 
number  of  male  arid  female  births.  This  table,  which  embraces  92,272 
births,  is  appended  : — 


68 


PROPORTION    OF    THE 


Months. 

Whole 
Number. 

SEX. 

PKOPORTKXI. 

Females  in 
each  10,000 
Males. 

Males. 

Females. 

Unknown. 

Males. 

Females. 

7478 
7533 
8352 
7920 
6804 
6934 
7804 
8267 
8251 
7974 
7446 
7509 

3833 
3817 
4283 
4030 
3552 
3565 
3918 
4225 
4136 
4115 
3899 
3855 

3572 
3640 
3977 
3771 
3194 
3306 
3833 
3992 
4053 
3791 
3499 
3586 

73 
76 
92 
119 
58 
63 
53 
50 
62 
68 
48 
68 

51.76 

51.18 
51.85 
51.66 
52.66 
51.81 
50.22 
51.44 
52.18 
52.06 
52.70 
51.81 

48.24 
48.82 
48.15 
48.34 
47.34 
48.19 
49.78 
48.56 
47.82 
47.94 
47.30 
48.19 

9319 

9558 
9286 

9357 
8989 
9301 
9910 
9440 
9164 
9208 
8975 
9301 

.February        

April  

May  

June   

July  

August  

September     

October  

Total    

92,272 

47,228 

44,214 

830 

51.65 

48.35 

9362 

In  the  fourteenth  registration  report  of  Massachusetts,  Dr.  Shurtleff 
has  given  a  table  containing  the  births  for  five  years,  ending  with  1855, 
which  is  also  appended  :— 


Sex. 

1850. 

1851. 

1862. 

1863. 

1854. 

18S5. 

Aggregate. 

Per 

Centage. 

14  137 

14  149 

15  246 

15  798 

16  352 

16  785 

93  ''67 

51  33 

Females  

13  392 

13  613 

14  432 

14  965 

15  469 

15  888 

87  759 

48  1  1'> 

135 

119 

124 

157 

176 

172 

833 

51 

Totals  

<)7  664 

28  681 

20  802 

30  920 

31  997 

32  845 

181  909 

100  0(> 

The  construction  of  these  tables  is  different,  and  intended  to  answer 
different  questions,  yet  they  both  reply  to  the  one  which  is  propounded  to 
them  as  to  the  relative  proportion  of  the  sexes  at  birth. 

Together  they  embrace  the  record  of  274,181  births,  and  extend  over  a 
period  of  eleven  years.  It  will  be  seen,  that  in  obedience  to  the  law  already 
spoken  of,  the  number  of  male  births  is  invariably  in  the  preponderance, 
and  in  correspondence  with  the  law  of  variation,  the  relative  pro 
portion  of  the  two  sexes  is  never  in  any  two  returns  alike.  Of  the  92,272 


SEXES    AT    BIRTH.  69 

births  included  in  Dr.  Curtis's  table,  47,228  were  males,  and  44,214  females. 
This  gives  the  relative  proportion  of  107  males  to  100  females,  but  during 
the  last  two  years  the  males  bore  the  proportion  of  108  to  100  females.  In 
the  year  1850,  the  excess  of  male  births  was  745  ;  in  1851, 1,33G  ;  in  1852, 
814;  in  1853,  833;  in  1854,  883;  and  in  1855,  897.  Thus  the  relative 
proportion  of  the  sexes  within  certain  limits  is  ever  varying — the  year 
1849,  which  had  an  excess  of  1,066  male  births  was  succeeded  by  a  year  in 
which  they  had  declined  to  745,  and  this  again  was  succeeded  by  one  in 
which  they  had  risen  to  1,336. 

Dr.  Curtis  separated  the  births  which  occurred  in  town  in  the  year 
1849,  from  those  which  took  place  in  rural  districts,  with  the  following 
result  : — 

City.  Country. 

Males  .        5,344     ..     7,985 

Females  5,106     ..     7,167 

Unknown  16     ..        155 

Total  .      10,466     ..  15,307 


Proportion  of  Females  in  each  10,000  Males    .         9,555     . .     8,976 

This  table  shows,  that  while  the  percentage  of  male  births  in  the 
country  was  52.70,  it  had  declined  in  town  to  51.14,  or  1.56  per  cent,  less 
than  in  the  country.  The  division  denominated  "  city,"  contained  nine 
cities  and  three  towns,  having  over  10,000  inhabitants  each. 

The  1859  births,  which  are  noted  in  the  registration  returns  of  Rhode 
Island,  for  the  year  1853,  are  divided  into  942  males,  899  females,  and  18 
unknown,  being  in  the  ratio  of  104  males  to  100  females.  It  may  be  noted 
as  a  curious  circumstance,  that  of  the  thirty-nine  births  occurring  in  Provi 
dence  county  among  the  colored  inhabitants,  but  seventeen  were  males,  and 
twenty-two  were  females.  The  preponderance  of  all  the  births  in  the 
county,  however,  was  in  favor  of  the  males. 


70  PROPORTION    OF    THE 

Of  those  which  took  place  in  1854,  1081  were  males,  1003  females,  and 
21  are  unknown;  and  of  those  which  occurred  in  1855,  1492  were  males, 
1421  females,  and  13  of  unknown  sex. 

"  The  number  of  males  born,"  adds  the  report,  "  in  all  our  returns, 
exceeds  that  of  females,  in  the  proportion  of  a  little  more  than  four  and 
four-tenths  per  cent.*  An  excess  of  male  over  female  births  is  generally 
found  in  prosperous  communities.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact,  one  which  we 
may  be  happy  that  the  information  now  before  us  gives  us  no  means  of 
illustrating,  that  periods  of  general  calamity  are  followed  by  a  lessened  pre 
ponderance  in  the  number  of  male  births,  or  even  an  excess  of  females. 
Thus  it  has  been  observed  that  children  born  nearly  a  year  after  the  preva 
lence  of  epidemic  cholera,  in  Philadelphia  and  also  in  Paris,  twenty-five 
years  ago,  show  a  preponderance  of  female  births.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
favorable  circumstances  of  plentiful  food,  pure  air,  wholesome  and  sufficient 
occupation,  without  overworking, — all  have  been  found  to  increase  the  pro 
portion  of  male  births.  In  this  point  of  view,  our  returns  are  not  very 
favorable  indications  of  the  state  of  our  people.  In  Massachusetts,  for  the 
five  years,  1849-1853,  the  excess  of  male  births  was  about  seven  per  cent. 
In  Philadelphia,  according  to  Dr.  Gouverneur  Emerson,  who  has  directed 
particular  attention  to  this  point,  it  is  about  7  per  cent.  ;  in  England,  about 
5 ;  in  France  and  Prussia,  about  7  ;  while  '  in  the  rural  districts  of  the 
United  States,  and  especially  in  the  newest  settlements,'  it  is  supposed  to  be 
not  less  than  10  per  cent.  We  trust  that  fuller  returns  will  enable  this 
State  to  make  a  more  favorable  show  ;  and  we  note  this  comparison,  not  to 
throw  a  slur  on  the  manly  force  of  our  State,  but  to  provoke,  if  possible, 
more  exact  attention  hereafter  to  this  inquiry,  which  is  considered  one  of 
the  tests  by  which  the  welfare  of  a  community  may  be  judged. f 

*  That  is,  for  every  1000  females,  about  1044  males  were  born, 
t  2d  Registration  Report  Rhode  Island,  p.  16. 


SEXES    AT    BIRTH.  71 

The  number  of  births  in  the  City  of  Providence  for  1856  was  1675,  of 
which  891  were  males,  and  784  females.  The  proportion  was  one  birth  to 
29.3  inhabitants. 

"  The  proportion  of  the  sexes  shows  a  remarkable  increase  in  the  rela 
tive  number  of  males,  being  53.19  males  and  46.81  females  in  each  100 
children  born,  or  113.6  males  to  100  females.  In  the  State  of  Massachu 
setts,  during  six  years  from  1849-54  inclusive,  the  proportion  was  51.37 
males,  and  48.12  females  in  each  100  children  born,  and  in  the  State  of 
Rhode  Island  for  the  year  1855,  the  proportions  were,  males  51.22  per 
cent.,  females  48.78  per  cent,  or  105  males  to  100  females. 

"  Bearing  in  mind  the  proposition  stated  in  last  year's  report,  that  '  the 
proportion  of  the  sexes  at  birth  depends  upon  the  location,  occupation,  and 
sanitary  condition  of  a  community,  the  proportion  of  males  being  greatest 
where  all  circumstances  are  most  favorable  to  health  and  prosperity,'  the 
proportions  for  the  year  1856,  would  indicate  an  unusually  healthy  condi 
tion  of  the  city. 

"  The  proportion  of  the  sexes  born  in  Providence  during  two  years  was : 

"  In  1855,  males  50.44  per  cent. ;  females  49.56  per  cent. 
In  1856,  males  53.19  per  cent. ;  females  46.81  per  cent."* 

The  table  of  births  for  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  already  given,  divides 
the  sexes  into  6,153  males,  5,646  females,  and  803  not  designated,  or  108 
male  to  100  female  births. 

The  number  of  births  returned  under  the  registration  system  of  Vir 
ginia  for  1853,  was  31,518,  divided  as  follows: 

Males, 16,180 

Females, 14,160 

Unknown, 1,178 

Total, 31,518 

»  2d  Report  of  E.  M.  Snow,  M.  D.,  Registrar  of  Providence. 


72  PROPORTION    OF    THE 

Or  iii  the  proportion  of  114  males  to  100  female  births.  The  returns 
embrace  the  births  in  114  out  of  137  counties,  leaving  23  counties  from 
which  returns  were  not  received.  The  births  embraced  in  the  census  report 
for  1850,  Avere  25,153.  A.  comparison  with  this  return  renders  it  probable 
that  the  number  of  births  returned  by  the  114  counties  in  1853  is  tolerably 
accurate. 

From  the  returns  of  Kentucky  the  following  table  is  deducted  : — 

Births  in  1852.  1853.  Males  to  100  Females. 

Males,        .        .        .        13,625  13,027  112 

Females,         .        .  12,109  11,805  110 

Unknown,  .         .  172  173 


Total,     .        .        .        25,906  25,005 

A.  very  remarkable  feature  connected  with  the  returns  of  births  in  Vir 
ginia  and  Kentucky  is  the  large  preponderance  of  male  over  female  births. 
It  unfortunately  happens  that  no  returns  are  made  by  other  neighboring 
States  by  which  to  institute  a  comparison.  There  are  some  reasons  for 
placing  reliance  upon  the  accuracy  of  these  returns  so  far  as  they  have  been 
rendered.  The  inhabitants  of  both  of  these  States  are,  for  the  most  part,  en 
gaged  in  agricultural  pursuits,  the  number  of  manufactories  and  populous 
towns  being  comparatively  small,  and  the  residents  of  the  country  greatly 
preponderating  over  those  of  towns.  Agriculture  in  these  States,  as  indeed 
in  all  southern  States,  is  considered  a  dignified  occupation,  while  commerce 
and  the  mechanic  arts  are  deemed  ignoble.  The  direct  effect  of  this  state 
of  things  is  to  entice  into  the  pursuit  of  agriculture  the  most  intelligent 
and  cultivated  class  of  the  community  and  to  leave  in  town  those  who  are 
least  so. 

There  is  consequently  scattered  over  every  portion  of  Virginia  and 
Kentucky  an  agricultural  population  of  high  intelligence,  who  are  the 


SEXES    AT   BIRTH. 


73 


patrons  of  the  humbler  classes  surrounding  them,  and  take  great  interest  in 
the  most  minute  details  of  their  daily  concerns.  An  individual  engaged  in 
collecting  statistical  information  among  such  a  population  as  has  been  de 
scribed,  would  find  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  the  facts  from  those  whose 
opinions  were  entitled  to  confidence. 

From  this  it  would  appear  extremely  probable,  that  the  sex  in  the 
cases  of  reported  births,  was  correctly  ascertained.  But  the  wide  disparity 
in  the  proportion  of  the  sexes  at  birth,  observed  in  Kentucky  in  the  two 
years  of  registration,  being  no  less  than  two  per  cent.,  together  with  the 
great  difference,  existing  between  this  State  and  Virginia,  as  compared  with 
the  more  northern  States,  where  births  have  been  recorded,  as  indeed  with 
the  observations  of  the  European  States,  would  lead  to  the  belief  that  some 
error  existed  which  time  and  careful  scrutiny  may  hereafter  develope. 

The  city  of  Charleston,  in  South  Carolina,  while  taking  a  census  in 
1848,  obtained  by  the  personal  enquiries  of  its  agents  the  number  of  births 
which  had  occurred  in  the  year  for  which  the  census  was  taken,  the  results 
of  which  are  as  follows : — 


WHITES. 

SLiVKS. 

FREK  COLORED. 

Wards. 

Hales. 

Females. 

Totals. 

Males. 

Females. 

Totals. 

Males. 

Females. 

Totals. 

1 

4(1 

30 

70 

44 

44 

88 

4 

2 

6 

2 

45 

4« 

94 

78 

61 

1S9 

10 

7 

17 

3 

70 

76 

146 

50 

45 

95 

4 

7 

11 

4 

74 

81 

155 

86 

76 

162 

13 

9 

22 

Total.... 

229 

236 

465 

258 

220 

484 

31 

25 

56 

As  the  facts  here  exhibited  are  somewhat  curious,  it  has  been  deemed 
advisable  to  allow  the  report  from  which  they  are-  taken  to  explain  them  for 
itself.     It  may  be  proper  to  remark,  that  the  census  report  and  accompany- 
9 


74  BIRTHS   IN    CHARLESTON. 

ing  tables  were  prepared  by  Dr.  J.  L.  Dawson,  who  has  for  many  years  held 
the  post  of  City  Register,  and  as  such  has  prepared  the  yearly  bills  of 
mortality,  and  Dr.  II.  W.  De  Saussure,  editor  of  the  Southern  Journal  of 
Medicine  and  Pharmacy. 

"  The  proportion  which  the  male  bear  to  the  female  births,  in  each  class 
of  the  population,  appears  from  the  following  table  :— 

WHITES. 

Births.  Proportion. 

Male,  .        -        .229  49.24=97.00 :  or  100. 

Female,         ...        236  50.76  100.        to  103.00 

465  100.00 

SLAVES. 
Births.  Proportion. 

Male,        .  .    258  53.31=400.00  :  or  112.03 

Female,  226  46.69      87.58  to    100. 


484  1000.00 

FKEE   COLORED. 

Births.  Proportion. 

Male,        ....      31  55.36=100.      :  or  124.01 

Female,  .          25  44.64       80.63  to   100. 


56  100.00 

"It  appears  that  during  the  year  1848,  the  male  births  among  the 
white  population  were  less  by  3  per  cent,  than  the  female.  This  must  be 
considered  an  exceptional  year  in  this  respect,  for  in  almost  all  years  in 
which  enumerations  of  the  population  have  been  made,  the  males  have 
exceeded  the  females,  and  a  reference  to  the  subject  of  '  public  health '  will 
show  that  the  male  deaths  exceed  the  female.  As  there  are  no  other  years, 
however,  with  which  the  births  can  be  compared,  the  present  proportions 


MALE  AND  FEMALE  POPULATION.  75 

must  remain,  to  be  corrected  by  futui'e  observations.  Among  the  slave  and 
free  colored  population,  the  male  exceed  the  female  births  by  13,  and  20 
per  cent.  ;  there  must,  however,  be  a  greater  mortality  of  males  in  these 
classes  at  the  early  ages  than  of  the  females  —  for  at  10  years  the  females 
exceed  the  males  among  the  slaves,  and  the  female  free  colored  exceed  the 
males  at  all  ages."* 

With  the  exception  of  the  births  of  the  white  population  of  Charleston, 
which  may  be  looked  upon  as  an  anomaly,  and  not  in  conformity  with 
the  laws  which  regulate  the  proportion  of  the  sexes  in  that  city  even, 
all  the  records  adduced  show  a  preponderencc  of  male  over  female 
births  sufficient,  notwithstanding  the  higher  rate  of  mortality  prevailing 
among  the  male  sex,  to  give  them  a  slight  advantage  in  numbers  in  each 
section  of  the  country  except  the  New  England  States,  where  the  female 
population  is  in  excess,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  following  table  :— 


Geographical  Divisions.  Males.  Females. 

New  England,    .....  1,346,680  1,358,415  100.8T 

Middle  States,      ....  3,186,102  3,112,945  97.  TO 

Southern  States,      ....  1,154,010  1,137,156  98.54 

South-Western  States    .     .  1,069,991  980,791  91.66 

North-Western,      ....  3,135,333  2,888,030  92.11 

Territories  and  California,     .  134,286  49,329  36.73 

Whether  the  ratio  of  increase  and  mortality,  with  slight  variations,  is 
uniformly  the  same  under  all  varieties  of  climate,  temperature,  and  indi 
vidual  relations,  or  whether  the  male  sex  is  exposed  under  some  circum 
stances  to  a  higher  rate  of  mortality  than  the  female,  and  the  equality  is 
maintained  by  an  increased  relative  number  of  male  births,  are  questions 
which  the  statistics  of  the  United  States  at  present  collected,  do  not  afford 
a  solution  for.  Those  of  the  different  countries  of  Europe,  although  extend- 

*   Census  of  Charleston,  page  181. 


7G 


HOFACKER   AND   SADLER 


ing  over  a  greater  length  of  time,  and  possessing  more  exactness,  are  neces 
sarily  limited  as  to  their  range  of  climate,  and  could  not  answer  this  enquiry 
as  satisfactorily  as  those  of  the  United  States,  if  they  were  equally  exten 
sive  and  reliable. 

But  whether  the  laws  which  regulate  the  relative  proportion  of  the 
sexes  at  birth,  in  old  and  new  countries,  in  hot  and  temperate  latitudes,  in 
town  and  country,  be  diverse  or  the  same,  as  an  element  of  information  and 
a  matter  for  curious  speculation  it  furnishes  one  of  the  most  important 
enquiries  connected  with  births,  and  is  absolutely  indispensable  to  a  just 
estimate  of  population. 

"  Taking  the  average  of  the  whole  of  Europe,"  says  Dr.  Carpenter, 
"  the  proportion  is  about  106  males  to  100  females.  It  is  curious,  however, 
that  this  proportion  is  considerably  different  for  legitimate  and  illegitimate 
births,  the  average  of  the  latter  being  102|  to  100,  in  places  where  the 
former  was  105f  to  100.  This  is  probably  to  be  accounted  for  by  the  fact, 
which  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  contributions  that  has  yet  been  made 
by  statistics  to  physiology,  that  the  sex  of  the  offspring  is  influenced  by  the 
relative  ages  of  the  parents.  The  following  table  expresses  the  average 
results  obtained  by  M.  Hofacker,  in  Germany,  and  by  Mr.  Sadler,  in  Britain, 
between  which  it  will  be  seen  there  is  a  manifest  correspondence,  although 
both  were  drawn  from  too  limited  a  series  of  observations.  The  numbers 
indicate  the  proportion  of  male  births  to  100  females  under  the  several 
conditions  mentioned  in  the  first  column : 


Father  younger  than  mother,    . 
Father  and  mother  of  equal  age, 
Father  older  by    1  to  6  years,    , 
"        "        "    6  to  9      "      . 
"        "        "     9  to  18     " 
"        "        "  18  and  more,  . 


Hofacker.  Sadler. 

.     90.6  Father  younger  than  mother,      .  86.5 

.     90.0  Father  and  mother  of  equal  age,  .  94.8 

103.4  Father  older  by    1  to  6  years,  .  103.7 

.  124.7        "        "        "    6  to  11    "    .     .  126.7 

143.7        "        "        "  11  to  16     "       .  147.7 

200.0        "        "        "  16  and  more,      .  163.2 


UPON    THE    SEXES    AT    BIRTH.  77 

From  this  it  appears,  that  the  more  advanced  age  of  the  male  parent 
has  a  very  decided  influence  in  occasioning  a  preponderance  in  the  numbers 
of  male  infants,  and  as  the  state  of  society  generally  involves  a  condition  of 
this  kind  in  regard  to  marriages,  whilst  in  the  case  of  illegitimate  children 
the  same  does  not  hold  good,  the  difference  in  the  proportional  number 
of  male  births  is  accounted  for.  We  are  not  likely  to  obtain  data  equally 
satisfactory  in  regard  to  the  influence  of  more  advanced  age  on  the  part  of 
the  female  parent  as  a  difference  of  10  or  15  years  on  that  side  is  not  so 
common.  If  it  existed  to  the  same  extent,  it  is  probable  that  the  same  law 
would  he  found  to  prevail  in  regard  to  female  children  born  under  such 
circumstances  as  has  been  stated  with  regard  to  the  male ; — namely,  that 
the  mortality  is  greater  during  embryonic  life  and  early  infancy,  so  that  the 
preponderance  is  reduced."* 

A  question  akin  to  the  one  just  discussed,  and  indeed  necessarily 
linked  with  it  is,  that  of  the  proportion  of  still-born  to  those  who  survive 
and  the  relative  proportion  of  the  sexes  among  them.  In  regard  to  both 
the  absolute  number  of  still-born  and  their  relative  division  into  sexes  the 
returns  are  exceedingly  incomplete.  The  State  of  Massachusetts  is  now 
enabled  to  furnish  the  most  complete  records,  but  even  among  the  or 
dinarily  exact  statistics  of  that  State,  in  a  very  large  proportion  of  cases, 
the  sex  of  the  still-born  child  has  been  overlooked. 

During  the  five  years,  1849-53,  in  which  142,830  living  births  are 
recorded,  there  occurred  2,G18  still-born  cases,  of  which  827  were  males 
and  574  females,  and  1,217  where  sex  is  not  designated  :— 

Still-born.  Proportion  of  Still-born 

Born  Ahve.  \0  each  10>000 

142,830  2,618  180 

"  It  has  been  a  subject  of  complaint  in  nearly  every  report,  that  suffi- 

*  Carpenter's  Physiology,  p.  1014. 


78  NUMBER   OF    STILL-BORN 

cient  pains  have  not  been  taken  in  ascertaining  the  sex  and  other  particu 
lars  relating  to  stillborn  children.  A  very  little  labor  would  ensure  more 
accurate  returns  than  are  now  had  on  this  particular,  which  ip  of  consider 
ably  more  importance  in  vital  and  mortuary  statistics  than  is  generally 
attributed  to  it  by  those  who  have  little  or  no  interest  in  investigations  of 
this  sort.  As  far  as  results  have  been  obtained  that  can  be  relied  upon,  it  is 
very  certain  that  the  prevailing  sex  in  this  Commonwealth  has  been  males. 
It  is  hoped  that  future  abstracts  will  show  that  more  regard  is  beginning  to 
be  felt  on  this  subject  of  statistical  inquiry."* 

The  returns  from  Virginia  show  the  following  results  :— 

...  „..,,  ,  Proportion  of  Still-born 

Born  Allve'  to  each  10,000. 

31,518  836  268 

The  registration  report  of  Kentucky  for  1852,  contains,  in  round 
numbers,  800  cases  of  still-born  children.  The  report,  in  alluding  to  this 
portion  of  the  return  remarks,  that  the  still-born  certainly  appear  to  be  in 
large  proportion — no  less  than  3.09  per  cent,  of  all  the  births.  This  may  be 
so,  yet  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  it  is  too  large,  because  a  number  of 
children  are  returned  as  still-born  who  have  names.  There  is  reason  to 
believe  that  a  number  of  assessors  mistook  the  precise  import  of  the  terms 
"alive"  and  "dead,"  and  returned  as  dead  those  which  were  dead  at  the 
time  of  making  the  assessment,  f 

The  number  of  still-born  returned  for  1853,  is  633  ;  of  which  467  were 
whites  and  166  colored:—- 

Born  Alive.  Still-born.  Proportion  of  Still-born 

to  each  10,000. 

Whites,     .     .     .  19,796  467  228 

Colored,      .     .      5,209  166  313 


Total  .     .     .     25,005  633  252 


*  14th  Registration  Report  for  Massachusetts,  p.  192. 
f  Registrar  Report  for  Kentucky  for  1862,  page  105. 


TO    THE    LIVING    BIRTHS. 


79 


White,      . 
Colored, 

Total,    . 


SEX   OF  STILL-BORN. 
Males.  Females. 

270  191 

90  72 


360 


263 


Unknown. 

6 

4 

10 


Total. 
467 

166 

633 


For  the  purpose  of  enabling  a  comparison  to  be  instituted  between  the 
relative  proportion  of  still-born  to  the  living  births  in  this  country  and 
Europe,  the  following  tables  have  been  introduced. 

ABSTRACT  OF   THE   BIRTHS   IN   PRUSSIA,    FRANCE,    SAXONY   AND   BELGIUM. 


Births. 

Still-born. 

Prussia  (1820-34)  —  Males,  

.     3,906,544 

147,705 

Females,     .... 

3,686,473 

109,363 

Total,      ,    .     .     . 

7,593,017 

257,063 

*  France  (1842.)—  Males, 

506,309 

17,969 

Females,  . 

.    476,587 

12,397 

Total,      

982,896 

30,366 

t  Austria  (1834-7-9.)—  Males, 

1,259,372 

•  • 

Females, 

.     1,189,627 

Total,       

.     2,448,999 

30,147 

%  Saxony  (1832-41.)—  Males, 

338,239 

17,618 

Females, 

317,102 

12,839 

Total,    . 

.     655,341 

30,457 

§  Belgium  (1842.)—  Males, 

70,676 

3,196 

Females, 

.       67,459 

2,336 

Total,      . 

138,135 

5,532 

*  M.  Moreau  do  Jounes.  f  Bcecher,  pp.  259-261.  \  Hoffman. 


§  Census. 


80  RELATIVE   PROPORTION    OF    STILL-BORN 

• 

The  annexed  table  from  an  excellent  article  on  Infantile  Mortality,  by 
Dr.  Tripe,  shows  the  percentage  of  males  and  females  among  the  still-born 
in  the  countries  mentioned  :— 

Percentage. 


Males.  Females.  Males.  Females. 

France  (three  years)      .     .  67,356  46,637  100.0  69.2 

Austria  (four  years)     .     .  25,288  17,351  100.0  68.6 

Belgium 38,312  28,359  100.0  74.0 

Saxony  (ten  years)      .     .  17,618  12.839  100.0  72.9 

Prussia  (three  years)      .     .  24,838  19,036  100.0  76.6 

"The  results  of  this  table,"  adds  Dr.  Tripe,  "are  very  striking,  for  we 
see  that  to  each  1000  males  who  are  still-born,  there  are  in  France  only  692, 
in  Austria  686,  in  Prussia  766,  in  Belgium  740,  and  in  Saxony  729,  still-born 
females.  The  variations  in  the  ratios  are  by  no  means  great,  and  they  are 
yet  smaller  in  each  country  during  a  period  of  years  than  those  shown  in 
the  above  table  for  different  countries.  This  cannot  be  proved  here,  for 
want  of  space.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  variation  does  not  amount  to  five 
and  a  half  per  cent.,  although  the  statistics  are  collected  from  such  different 
nations  and  races ;  showing  that  the  law  is  general,  and  that  the  cause  of 
the  excess  of  male  deaths  over  those  of  females  commences  at  the  earliest 
period  of  life,  and  diminishes,  as  we  have  already  shown,  as  age  advances, 
even  from  the  first  month,  and  most  probably  week,  of  extra  uterine  life. 

"This  opinion  receives  very  strong  confirmation  by  a  comparison  of 
the  ratios  of  still-born  male  and  female  children  with  those  of  children  who 
die  during  the  first  month.  We  find  in  Belgium  that  the  proportion  of 
still-born  female  children  to  that  of  males  is  740  to  1000 ;  whilst  that  of 
deaths  under  one  month  old  is  749  to  1000;  and  in  England  (years 
1839-44)  765  to  1000."* 

*  Brit,  and  Foreign  Med-Ohi.  Review  for  April,  1857,  p.  348. 


IN    EUROPEAN    STATES.  81 

Among  the  earliest  records  of  the  proportion  of  still-born  to  those  Lorn 
alive,  are  those  given  by  Mr.  Wargentin,  in  1776,  of  the  births  in  Sweden 
and  Finland,  for  nine  years,  ending  in  1763.  During  these  nine  years  there 
were — 


Proportion  of  still- 


Males, 
Females, 


Born  alive. 

Still-born. 

born  to  eacli 

44,954 

1269 

282 

43,078 

963 

217 

88,032  2205  250 


These  results  are  interesting  as  a  standard  of  comparison,  because  they 
were  made  at  a  period  of  time  comparatively  remote  from  the  present,  and 
during  the  interval  which  has  elapsed  many  changes  are  supposed  to  have 
been  introduced  into  the  practice  of  obstetrics,  by  means  of  which  labor 
is  facilitated,  and  the  life  of  the  foetus  placed  in  less  jeopardy.  Yet  a 
comparison  of  the  returns  in  both  countries  shows  about  the  same  results, 
and  certainly  does  not  furnish  as  strong  an  argument  in  favor  of  the  advance 
of  obstetrical  skill  as  might  naturally  have  been  anticipated.  In  this  respect, 
the  returns  from  Virginia  and  Kentucky  are  less  favorable  than  those  from 
Massachusetts  ;  for  while  the  former  assimilate  very  nearly  to  those  derived 
from  Sweden,  by  Wargentin,  the  latter  exhibit  a  decided  diminution  in  the 
number  of  still-born.  The  inference  is  that  the  Massachusetts  returns  arc 
more  complete  in  this  respect,  than  those  of  Virginia  and  Kentucky. 

It  has  been  observed  that  in  every  return  the  number  of  still-born 
males  was  greater  than  that  of  the  females.  Dr.  Clark,  the  physican  to  the 
Dublin  Lying-in  Hospital,  contributed  a  paper  to  the  Royal  Society,  which 
appeared  in  the  seventy-sixth  volume  of  the  Philosophical  Transactions, 
assigning  as  a  chief  cause  for  the  greater  number  of  male  than  female 
deaths,  the  increased  size  of  the  male  foetus,  which  not  only  requires  more 
10 


82  DR  CLARK'S  THEORY. 

sustenance  before  birth,  than  the  female,  but  has  greater  difficulties  to 
encounter  in  the  process  of  parturition.  Whenever  therefore  any  delicacy 
of  constitution  on  the  part  of  the  mother,  prevents  her  from  yielding  to 
the  foetus  in  utero  a  proper  amount  of  nutriment,  or  a  physical  malformation 
presents  an  obstacle  at  the  moment  of  birth,  the  chances  of  death  are 
largely  increased  in  the  male  child  over  those  of  the  female. 

These  observations  are  undoubtedly  correct,  and  have  received  the 
confirmation  of  subsequent  writers.  An  additional  cause  assigned  by  Dr. 
Clark  in  the  same  paper,  although  supported  by  some  plausible  reasons, 
does  not  appear  to  be  quite  so  clear.  This  is  that  the  greater  size  of  the 
male  child  renders  it  more  liable  to  the  inherited  infirmities  of  the  father, 
as  well  as  to  the  results  of  the  defective  constitution  of  the  mother. 


EFFECT  OF  THE  SEASONS  ON  CONCEPTION.  83 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

THE  EFFECT  OF  SEASONS  ON  CONCEPTION. 

The  effect  of  the  seasons  in  influencing  conception,  is  as  elsewhere 
quite  manifest  in  the  returns  of  births  in  the  United  States. 

The  table  for  five  years,  prepared  by  Dr.  Curtis,  from  the  Regis 
tration  Reports  of  Massachusetts,  (page  68,)  shows  that  the  largest  number 
of  births  occurred  in  March,  and  that  the  next  months  most  prolific  in 
births  were  August  and  September.  From  this  isolated  example,  the 
inference  might  be  drawn  that  June  was  the  month  most  favorable  to 
conception,  and  that  November  and  December  were  the  next  most  favor 
able  months,  these  being  the  months  in  which  the  conceptions  took  place 
which  produced  the  births  in  March,  August  and  September.  The  least 
number  of  births  occurred  in  May  and  June,  from  which  it  might  be  infer 
red  that  August  and  September  were  the  least  prolific  months  in  the  year. 

Dr.  W.  L.  Sutton,  of  Georgetown,  Kentucky,  has  prepared  a  table, 
from  the  births  occurring  in  that  State  in  1853,  to  illustrate  this  point,  which 
is  annexed  :— 

Date  of  Conception.  Male.  Female. 

March,  M  1,431  M  1,302 

February,  ....          1,162  1,038 

January,  .         .         .         .               1,111  1,035 


84  EFFECT    OF    THE    SEASONS 

Date  of  Conception.  Male.  Female. 

November,  ....  1,128  084 

December,  ....  1,133  9G6 

June,  ....  1,106  897 

July,  ....  1,024  906 

August,  ....  946  972 

May,  ....  960  896 

October,  ....  987  863 

September,  ...  919  886 

April,  ....  m  909               m  842* 

From  this  table  it  would  appear  the  month  of  March  was  by  far  the 
most  prolific,  and  that  February  and  January  followed  next  in  succession  ; 
while  October,  September,  and  April  appear  to  be  the  least  prolific. 

The  wide  difference  in  the  proportion  of  births  in  the  different  months 
of  the  year  observable  in  this  table,  is  somewhat  remarkable,  and  would 
appear  to  indicate  that  the  returns  upon  which  it  is  based  are  far  from  com 
plete. 

By  a  comparison  of  the  results  of  these  tables,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
prolific  months  in  that  prepared  by  Dr.  Curtis  are  not  the  same  as  in  that 
arranged  by  Dr.  Sutton.  Upon  this  point  there  appears  to  be  no  corres 
pondence,  and  it  would  seem  that  the  most  reasonable  inference  to  be 
drawn  from  the  facts  as  thus  enunciated,  is  that  if  fecundity  is  influenced 
by  particular  seasons,  and  in  this  respect  is  amenable  to  fixed  laws,  then  the 
laws  which  so  regulate  it  are  not  the  same  in  the  States  of  Massachusetts 
and  Kentucky. 

Mr.  Milne,  for  the  purpose  of  determining  this  question,  arranged  two 
tables,  one  for  Sweden  and  Finland,  based  upon  the  observations  of  Mr. 
Nicander,  which  gives  the  annual  averages  of  conceptions  for  twenty  years, 
terminating  with  1795 ;  the  other  for  Montpellier,  in  the  South  of  France, 

*  M  indicates  Maximum,  and  m  minimum,  in  all  these  tables. 


ON    CONCEPTION. 


upon  data  procured  from  the  Memoir   of   M.    Morgue,    which  gives  the 
averages  of  conceptions  for  twenty-one  years,  terminating  with  1792. 

A  table  formed  of  these  is  introduced,  in  order  that  a  comparison  may 
be  made  between  them  and  those  of  Drs.  Curtis  and  Sutton.  The  com 
parison  is  valuable,  not  only  because  of  the  space  of  time  which  has 
elapsed  between  the  making  of  the  observations,  but  also  because  they 
were  made  in  countries  bearing  a  parallel  to  each  other  in  point  of  geo 
graphical  position ;  thus  Sweden  may  be  said  to  possess  a  climate  some 
what  similar  to  Massachusetts,  while  Montpellier  and  Kentucky  correspond 
with  each  other  in  this  respect :— 


TABLE  SHOWING  TIIE  INTENSITY  OF  FECUNDITY  IN  EACH  MONTH. 

IN  SWEDEN  AND  FINLAND. 

IN  MONTPELLIER,  FRANCE. 

CONCEPTIONS. 

MONTH. 

CONCEPTIONS. 

«»      • 

Mn.rr'ftir*»a 

Male. 

Female. 

Female. 

Male. 

1519 

4270 

4106 

January, 

1044 

1156 

596 

1385 

4210 

4020 

Febry. 

M1185 

M1221 

M1165 

1869 

4287 

4000 

March, 

1067 

1173 

159 

1792 

4452 

4277 

April, 

1145 

1210 

403 

13!I3 

4377 

4213 

May, 

1090 

1183 

526 

1057 

4525 

437  G 

June, 

989 

1056 

472 

1071 

4342 

4103 

July, 

916 

918 

447 

m   732 

3889 

3763 

August, 

m    863 

934 

484 

1539 

3696 

3547 

Sept. 

866 

m    909 

623 

M4267 

m3632 

m3508 

October, 

!i4n 

993 

444 

3251 

3927 

3726 

Nov. 

1007 

1086 

625 

3798 

M4708 

M4485 

Dec. 

1033 

1080 

m  142 

24,073 

50,321 

48,250 

Total,                12,145 

12,919 

5,926 

Proportion  of  those  born  alive  to  the  etill-born  in  Sweden : — 


Males, 

Females, 

Total, 


as  10,000 
to 


310 
238 
275 


Still-born  males  to  stillborn  females,  average  13,658  to  10,000 

Upon  an  examination  of  the  Swedish  table,  it  will  be  seen  that  in  the 
month  of  December  the  greatest  number  of  conceptions  took  place,  while 


86  EFFECT    OF    THE    SEASONS 

the  fewest  occurred  in  September  and  October.  The  Montpcllier  table,  on 
the  contrary,  exhibits  the  largest  number  in  February,  and  the  smallest  in 
August  and  September.  Now,  there  does  not  appear  to  be  any  more  corres 
pondence,  in  the  maximum  periods  of  conception,  between  Sweden  and  the 
South  of  France,  than  there  is  between  Massachusetts  and  Kentucky  ;  but  if 
a  comparison  be  made  between  Sweden  and  Massachusetts,  and  a  similar 
one  between  Montpellier  and  Kentucky,  it  Avill  be  seen  that  in  both  instances 
there  is  a  remarkable  identity  between  them.  In  Sweden  and  Massachusetts 
the  month  most  favorable  to  conception  is  December,  while  in  Kentucky 
the  largest  number  occurred  in  March,  and  in  Montpellier  in  February. 

The  isolated  facts  connected  with  the  births  of  Kentucky  for  a  single 
year,  and  those  of  Massachusetts  for  five  years,  do  not  furnish  sufficient 
grounds  upon  which  to  found  a  conclusion  as  important  as  this,  yet  Avhen 
taken  in  connection  with  other  circumstances  attendant  upon  the  movements 
of  population,  it  seems  difficult  to  resist  the  conclusion,  that  in  different 
latitudes  there  are  different  laws  affecting  the  human  species,  beginning 
with  conception  and  terminating  with  the  last  moment  of  existence. 

Mr.  Milne,  whose  opinions  are  usually  adopted  with,  great  caution,  and 
are  entitled  .to  the  highest  respect,  sees,  in  the  tables  he  adduces,  decided 
evidence  of  the  influence  of  the  seasons  upon  conceptions,  and  concludes 
that  if  it  were  not  for  the  disturbing  element  of  marriage,  which  is  not  so 
accurately  regulated  as  that  of  births,  this  influence  would  be  still  more 
manifest. 

"  The  rate  of  frequency  of  the  conceptions  in  Sweden  does  in  fact  come 
twice  in  the  year  to  a  maximum,  and  twice  to  a  minimum.  Taking  the 
totals  for  an  example,  it  will  be  found  that  having  been  at  a  maximum  in 
December,  they  begin  the  year  by  decreasing,  and  continues  to  fall  till 
February,  when  they  attain  their  first  minmum  ;  then  rise  till  June, 
when  they  are  at  their  first  maximum  from  that  time  they  continue  to  fall 


ON    CONCEPTION.  87 

till  October,  when  they  are  at  the  minimum  of  the  whole  year,  and  from 
thence  they  rise  till  December,  when  they  attain  to  the  maximum  of  the 
year."* 

If  the  table  of  Massachusetts  were  substituted  for  that  of  Sweden,  and 
analyzed  by  the  above  quotation  from  Milne,  it  would  be  found  to  corres 
pond  in  all  its  parts,  and  to  present  a  parallelism  too  exact  in  detail  to  be 
otherwise  than  the  result  of  a  fixed  law,  which  operates  at  the  present  day 
upon  a  population  far  removed  from  the  scene  of  the  original  observations, 
and  which  had  scarcely  an  existence  at  the  time  they  were  made,  as  it  did 
in  the  last  century  upon  the  inhabitants  of  Sweden. 

And  although  the  correspondence  in  detail  between  Montpellier  and 
Kentucky  is  not  as  exact  as  that  between  Sweden  and  Massachusetts,  yet  it 
is  sufficiently  so  to  seem  to  indicate  the  direction  of  a  general  principle,  and 
it  is  more  than  probable  that  when  the  returns  of  Kentucky  shall  have 
attained  the  exactness  which  characterizes  those  of  Montpellier,  and  cover  a 
sufficient  space  of  time  to  give  them  authority,  they  will  develope  with 
greater  exactness  the  operations  of  this  law. 

The  opinion  is  entertained  by  Mr.  Milne,  that  if  it  were  not  for  the 
derangement  produced  in  the  movements  of  conception  by  marriage,  that 
the  maximum  would  occur  about  midsummer  instead  of  the  winter  months, 
as  shown  by  the  European  tables  above  inserted. 


I  H  («'  A  n'    1 
"UN  IV  KUfSITV    <>»• 

CALIFORNIA. 


*  Milne  on  Annuities,  p.  503. 


88  RELATIVE    PROPORTION   OF   MARRIAGES. 


CHAPTER     IX. 

MARRIAGES. 

The  number  of  marriages  to  that  of  births  is  about  one  of  the  former 
to  four  of  the  latter,  yet  notwithstanding  their  small  number,  the  irregu 
larity  of  their  distribution  is  supposed  to  exert  such  an  influence  over  the 
natural  order  of  births  as  to  disturb,  in  the  manner  heretofore  indicated, 
the  effect  of  the  different  periods  of  the  year  upon  them.  The  Swedish 
and  Montpellier  tables  are  accompanied  by  a  column  giving  the  number  of 
marriages  which  took  place  in  each  month,  based  upon  the  same  elements 
of  calculation  as  the  columns  of  births,  for  the  purpose  of  illustrating  their 
effect  upon  births. 

Subjoined  will  be  found  a  table  of  the  marriages  which  occurred  in 
Massachusetts  for  twelve  years,  ending  31st  December,  1855,  so  arranged  as 
to  indicate  the  number  in  each  month,  and  a  comparison  of  the  whole  with 
the  last  year.  The  number  of  marriages  thus  tabulated  amount  to  105,700. 
This  number  although  small  when  placed  in  comparison  with  those  em 
braced  in  many  of  the  tables  of  the  older  countries  of  Europe,  and  indeed 
with  that  of  the  Swedish  tables  already  introduced,  exhibits  with  tolerable 
certainty,  the  habits  of  the  population  in  this  regard  upon  whom  the  selec 
tion  of  time  mainly  depends. 


IN    THE    DIFFERENT    MONTHS. 


89 


Mosul.. 

1835. 

12  Years. 

Average. 

MONTHS. 

1855. 

12  Years. 

Average. 

1,131 

9,311 

776 

September  

1,038 

9,057 

754 

1,001 

7,088 

591 

October  

1,229 

10,824 

903 

m658 

m5,806 

m484 

Ml  516 

Ml  3,984 

Ml,  166 

1,079 

8,829 

736 

December  

893 

8,313 

693 

May 

1,118 

9,045 

804 

Unknown  

46 

605 

5(1 

ft  
June  

900 

8,152 

679 

July  

896 

7,160 

596 

August  

824 

6,906 

576 

Totals 

1'  329 

'05  700 

8,803 

While  this  table  exhibits  great  similarity  of  results  so  far  as  particular 
months  are  concerned,  yet  it  shows  a  great  disproportion  in  the  number 
of  marriages  in  the  different  months.  The  largest  number  took  place 
uniformily,  throughout  the  whole  period  of  twelve  years,  in  the  month  of 
November,  while  the  least  occurred  in  March. 

The  following  table,  showing  the  number  of  marriages  which  took 
place  in  Kentucky,  in  1852  and  1853,  and  the  months  in  which  they  were 
solemnized,  indicates  December  as  the  maximum,  and  July  as  the  minimum 
months : — 


January, 

February, 

March, 

April, 

May, 

June, 

July, 

August, 

September, 

October, 

November, 

December, 

Unknown, 


Total, 


1852. 

348 
357 
398 
326 
272 
300 
283 
390 
521 
581 
558 
755 
1C 

5,105 


1853. 

346 
365 
435 
304 
316 
294 
276 
435 
499 
604 
515 
656 
116 

5,161 


11 


90  SEASON  OF    MARRIAGE   INFLUENCED 

The  preference  for  particular  months  would  appear  to  indicate  that 
some  peculiarity  in  the  habits  and  customs  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  different 
States  lay  at  the  foundation.  Mr.  L.  Shattuck  assigns  as  a  reason,  that 
November  is  the  month  in  which  occurs  the  New  England  festival  of 
Thanksgiving,  when  family  circles  meet  together  and  are  presented  to  their 
newly-formed  marriage  connexions. 

This  period  of  festivity,  so  universally  observed  by  the  inhabitants  of 
New  England,  is  almost  entirely  disregarded  by  the  residents  of  the  South 
ern  States.  Dr.  Sutton  supposes  that  the  festivities  of  Christmas  may  induce 
the  more  frequent  selection  of  December,  in  Kentucky.  It  is  quite  certain, 
that  in  the  two  States  whose  marriage  returns  are  here  given,  the  festive 
period  takes  place  in  different  months,  and  this  difference  is  manifest  in  the 
number  of  marriages  which  occur  in  each,  at  the  season  which  is  celebrated 
with  most  glee  by  its  inhabitants. 

The  large  number  of  marriages  among  foreigners,  included  in  the  Mas 
sachusetts  returns,  could  not  have  been  influenced  by  this  custom,  which  is 
purely  local,  and  derives  its  origin  from  the  early  Puritan  settlers  of  New 
England.  An  examination  of  the  returns  in  detail,  for  each  registration 
year,  shows  that  the  marriages  among  the  foreign  residents  arc  not  largely 
in  excess  at  this  period,  as  are  those  among  the  natives  of  New  England, 
which  would  seem  to  corroborate  the  correctness  of  the  cause  assigned  by 
Mr.  Shattuck,  more  particularly  as  similar  causes  are  supposed  to  produce 
like  results  in  other  countries. 

Mr.  Wargentin  remarks,  that  there  are  always  many  more  marriages 
contracted  during  the  autumn  and  winter  in  Sweden,  than  in  the  spring  and 
summer,  because  the  harvest  produces  abundance,  and  the  cattle  arc  killed 
in  autumn,  so  that  the  bulk  of  the  people,  who  are  neither  sufficiently  rich, 


1?Y    NATIONAL    FESTIVITIES.  91 

nor  economical   to  maintain  an  equable  expenditure,  are    then    best  able 
to  give  the  entertainments  that  are  customary  on  such  occasions.* 

"  And  M.  Mourgue  informs  us  that  at  Montpellier,  the  month  of  Feb 
ruary  always  furnishes  the  greatest  number  of  marriages  at  the  epoch  la  Jin 
du  Carnaval,  and  next  to  that  the  month  of  November,  before  the  epoch 
called  les  Avents."-^  The  seasons  which  succeed  both  of  these  epochs  arc 
those  of  fasting,  in  which  the  Catholic  Church,  the  prevalent  one  at  Mont 
pellier,  discountenances  as  far  as  possible  the  solemnization  of  the  rite  of 
matrimony.  Besides,  the  end  of  Carnival  is  a  period  of  more  boisterous 
hilarity  than  the  Thanksgiving  of  New  England  or  the  Christmas  holiday 
rejoicings  of  the  Southern  States. 

The  ages  of  the  persons  who  contract  marriage  relations,  furnishes 
a  very  important  element  in  all  questions  tending  to  elucidate  the  influence 
which  this  compact  has  upon  society.  Upon  this  subject  the  Registrar 
General  of  England,  with  great  propriety  remarks,  that  "it  is  not  a  little 
remarkable,  that  although  the  increase  of  population  and  the  influence  of 
early  and  late  marriages  on  the  welfare  of  nations,  have  for  the  whole  of 
the  present  century  occupied  public  attention,  and  been  made  the  basis  of 
theories  which  have  guided  or  based  legislation,  no  provision  has  yet  been 
made  for  determining  the  simplest  fundamental  facts — the  foundation  of  all 
reasoning  on  the  subject — such  as  the  age  of  mothers,  of  children,  and  the 
numbers  of  married  and  single  persons  at  the  several  periods  of  life.  Upon 
many  of  these  points  the  greatest  ignorance  prevails,  writers  on  population 
depending  on  rough  approximations,  derived  from  scanty,  imperfect  and 
erroneous  data,  because  the  censuses  and  registers  have  not  yet  been  taken 
and  abstracted  upon  a  comprehensive  and  well  considered  plan." 

These    observations,    which    had    exclusive   reference  to  the  English 

*  Mcmoirea  abriiges  de  1" Academic  <le  Stockholm,  p.  32. 
f  Milue  on  Annuities,  p.  001. 


92 


AGES    OF    PERSONS    MARRIED 


system  of  registration  and  mode  of  taking  the  census,  at  the  time  they  were 
made,  may  be  applied  with  equal  force  to  the  plan  adopted  by  this  Govern 
ment  for  enumerating  the  population.  In  some  of  the  continental  States, 
not  only  arc  the  ages  of  the  parties  who  marry  noticed,  and  their  relative 
number  to  those  in  single  life  given,  but  the  mother  is  followed  in  her 
subsequent  married  life,  and  her  age  re-noted  at  every  successive  birth  of  a 
child,  so  that  it  is  possible  to  ascertain  the  average  number  of  children  born 
to  each  marriage,  and  the  age  of  the  mother  at  the  period  of  the  births. 
The  value  of  the  information  thus  given  is  evident,  and  there  is  no  reason 
why  similar  results  may  not  be  obtained  in  the  United  States. 

The  following  tables  exhibit  the  number  at  the  several  specified  ages 
of  each  sex,  who  have  been  married  in  Massachusetts,  for  six  years  and 
eight  months,  beginning  May  1st,  1844,  and  terminating  January  1st, 
1851  :— 


AGES  or  MEN. 

AGES  OF  WOMEN. 

§ 

h 
•O 

§ 

s 

0 

i 

8 

3 
8 

S 

£ 
g 

3 
2 
& 

3 

0 

o 
•«* 

8 
S 

9 

3 

S 

s 

8 
3 

S 

g 

3 
S 

s 

S 

S 

£ 

£ 

1 

o 

CO 

3 
a 
t- 

S 
$ 

o 

| 

o 
S 
a 
O 

I 

Under  20  
20  to  26,  
25  to  30  

30  to  35 

476 
5664 
2080 
425 
98 
30 
7 
1 
2 

183 
8710 
6186 
1637 
448 
137 
34 
17 
3 
3 
2 

22 
1159 
3131 
1533 
589 
281 
92 
40 
13 
2 
2 

1 
112 

397 
734' 
457 
321 
162 
64 
23 
14 
2 
1 

1 

5 

6 
79 
67 
56 
13 
15 
6 
5 
2 
5 
1 

836 

688 
15,746 
11,950 
4555 
1978 
1172 
686 
460 
286 
229 
136 
57 
28 
5 
870 

38,840 

19 
71 
120 
295 
206 
182 
103 
60 
10 
12 
4 

3 
13 
42 
56 
146 
107 
104 
58 
44 
5 
10 
2 
1 

3 
7 
19 
24 
65 
74 
66 
61 
17 
4 
1 

'i 

3 
9 
24 
39 
43 
50 
36 
9 
3 

2 

•  • 

•• 

•  • 

•• 

35  to  40,  
40  to  45  
45  to  50  

2 
2 
10 
26 
24 
29 
6 
3 

1 

'i 

2 
6 
16 
23 

1 

1 

3 

5 
1 
5 

4 
4 

1 
1 

1 
3 
1 
1 

i 
i 

50  to  55  

55  to  60  
60  to  65  
65  to  70,  
70  to  76,  

75  to  80  
Over  80  

•• 

1 

Unknown, 
Totals,  

5 

15 

7 

8788 

17,376 

6872 

2294 

1081 

691 

320 

217 

106 

73 

22 

8 

2 

1 

1091 

A  similar  table,  including  similar  results,  for  Kentucky,  for  the  years 
1852  and  1853,  aV  likewise  subjoined  :— 


IN  NORTHERN  AND  SOUTHERN  STATES. 


AGES  OP  WOMEN. 

AGES 

OP 

MEN. 

Whole 
No. 

Under 
20. 

20  to  25. 

25  to  80. 

30  to  35. 

85  to  40. 

40  to  45. 

45  to  50. 

50  to  55. 

55  to  60. 

60  to  65. 

65  to  70. 

Orer 
TO. 

Onk'n. 

Under  20 

614 

520 

167 

15 

5 

1 

4 

20  to  25 

4732 

2577 

1822 

238 

48 

13 

4 

3 

.. 

m 

t 

27 

25  to  30 

2331 

98S 

1024 

251 

46 

10 

1 

1 

.   . 

. 

. 

§ 

. 

10 

SO  to  35 

894 

267 

389 

142 

71 

10 

4 

1 

4 

g 

, 

( 

6 

35  to  40 

672 

83 

186 

105 

49 

33 

8 

4 

. 

. 

4 

40  to  45 

296 

80 

•JO 

52 

61 

36 

21 

3 

1 

. 

. 

2 

45  to  50 

200 

8 

46 

39 

33 

39 

17 

5 

9 

2 

. 

. 

2 

50  to  55 

148 

11 

21 

29 

23 

24 

17 

22 

2 

,   . 

1 

. 

2 

55  to  60 

77 

2 

7 

10 

7 

16 

10 

15 

3 

5 

1 

60  to  65 

66 

3 

4 

8 

5 

9 

8 

13 

10 

5 

2 

2 

2 

Go  to  70 

85 

3 

1 

2 

5 

7 

7 

6 

1 

1 

2 

t 

1 

Over    70 

29 

3 

1 

2 

2 

6 

4 

1 

4 

5 

5 

.  . 

Unknowi 

372 

17 

29 

7 

2 

315 

Total  .  . 

10,166 

4397 

3791 

900 

362 

199 

104 

68 

29 

17 

8 

10 

•• 

370 

And  also  a  table,  based  upon  similar  results  in  Belgium,  for  the  year 
1841  :— 


TOTAL    MARRIAGES 

IN    BELGIUM. 

Men. 

Women. 

Under  21,     .... 

774 

2,831 

21  to  25, 

4,677 

7,421 

25  "  30,     . 

10,067        

9,082 

30  "35, 

6,527 

4,928 

35  "  40,     . 

3,636        

2,791 

40  "45, 

2,037 

1,477 

45  "  50,     . 

934 

753 

50  "55, 

512 

357 

55  "  60,     . 

310         

126 

CO  "  G5, 

244 

67 

65  "  70,     . 

112 

28 

70  "75, 

36         

13 

75  "  80,     . 

8         

2 

80  and  upwards, 

2 

— 

29,876 


The  foregoing  tables,  showing  the  results  of  the  marriages  contracted 


94  AGES   OF    FEMALES   MARRIED 

in  the  States  of  Massachusetts  and  Kentucky,  so  far  as  the  age  of  the 
parties  is  concerned,  and  adapted  from  the  Belgium  returns,  exhibit  in  a 
concise  and  admirable  manner,  the  age  and  condition  of  the  persons 
who  have  contracted  this  relation.  It  is  hardly  possible  to  devise  a  tabu 
lated  form  which  shall  express  the  facts  so  clearly  and  concisely  as  the 
one  just  given. 

From  the  Massachusetts  Returns  it  appears,  that  of  the  38,840  females 
who  formed  marriage  relations,  8,788  were  under  20,  17,375  between  20 
and  25,  6,872  between  25  and  30,  2,294  between  30  and  35,  1,081  between 
35  and  40,  and  2,437  above  that  age.  Of  the  males,  688  were  less  than  20, 
15,746  between  20  and  25,  11,950  between  25  and  30,  and  10,456  above 
that  age. 

There  are  peculiarities  which  do  not  admit  of  tabulation,  and  yet 
arc  interesting.  Dr.  Curtis,  in  his  remarks  upon  the  marriages  which  took 
place  in  Massachusetts,  mentions  some  of  these  :— 

"  Age  presents  also  quite  an  interesting  topic  for  consideration.  During 
the  twenty  months  we  find  marriages  among  persons  of  all  ages  between 
13  and  91.  The  youngest  individual  married  was  a  female  of  13  years, 
several  instances  of  which  occurred.  The  youngest  male  was  16,  who  mar 
ried  a  female  of  19  ;  the  youngest  couple  was  a  male  of  17  and  a  female  of 
14 ;  a  male  of  20  and  another  of  25  married  each  a  female  of  13  ;  a  male 
of  19,  one  of  21,  and  another  of  27,  married  each  a  female  of  14;  two 
males  of  25  each,  two  of  28  each,  one  of  30,  one  of  35,  and  another  of  47, 
married  each  a  female  of  15  ;  and  a  bachelor  of  50  married  a  girl  of  19. 

'  Although  the  male  was  usually  the  eldest  of  the  allied  couple,  yet 
many  instances  happened  where  the  reverse  obtained  ;  thus  we  find  a  male 
under  20  married  a  female  over  40  ;  a  bachelor  of  24  married  a  widow  of- 
42  ;  a  bachelor  under  35  married  a  widow  over  60 ;  and  another  bachelor 


IN    MASSACHUSETT    AND    KENTUCKEY. 


95< 


under  40  married  a  widow  over  75.  A  female  of  18  married  the  second 
time,  and  one  of  59  married  the  fifth  time.  A  male  of  30  married  the  third 
time.  One  of  36  and  another  of  45  married  the  fourth  time  each.  Among 
those  at  later  ages  in  life  we  find  a  male  of  8 1  married  a  female  of  69  ;  but 
the  oldest  couple  married  were  Mr.  Calvin  Kilborn,  of  Princeton,  and  Mrs. 
Susan  Saundcrs,  at  the  respective  and  respectable  ages  of  91  and  70.  He 
is  a  farmer  in  good  health,  of  sprightly  habits  and  good  mental  faculties, 
still  remembering  the  scenes  and  "incidents  of  travel"  which  he  ex 
perienced  in  1777,  when  he  went  as  a  fifer  at  the  Bennington  Alarm.  It 
seems  worthy  of  notice  that  in  this  office,  and  almost  side  by  side,  are  the 
official  records  of  Mr.  Kilborn's  enlistment  in  Capt.  John  White's  company 
which  marched  to  Bennington  in  July,  1777,  and  also  of  his  marriage  in 
November,  1848,  more  than  threescore  and  ten  years  having  intervened 
between  these  interesting  events.  He  has  always  been  able  to  do  the 
work  on  his  farm  to  the  present  time,  with  but  little  assistance. 

"  The  following  statement  will  be  found  to  possess  interest  by  showing 
the  number  and  proportion  of  marriages  at  the  different  ages  of  the  sexes 
during  the  last  five  years  and  eight  months,  viz.,  since  May  1,  1854,  7229 
males  and  7453  females,  whose  ages  were  not  stated,  have  been  omitted  in 
the  calculations  : — 


-1  -• 

Males, 
Females, 

401 
5871 

10,115 
11,313 

7941 
3761 

2430 
1329 

1203 
723 

748 
450 

486 
260 

322 
174 

218 

99 

172 

47 

96 
38 

67 
14 

29 
4 

5 
1 

24,232 
24,o78 

Ages, 

o 
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v  55 

Males, 
Females, 

1.66 
24.40 

41.74 
46.98 

32.77 
15.58 

10.04 
5.62 

4.<I7 
3.00 

3.08 
1.86 

2.01 
1.01 

1.33 

.72 

.90 
.41 

.69 
.19 

.89 
.16 

.28 
.06 

.12 
.02 

.02 

100. 
100. 

"  The  above  abstract  indicates,    so   far  as    can  be  illustrated  by  an 
analysis  of  upwards  of  24,000  marriages,  the  ages  of  parties  to  which  were 


96  AVERAGE  AGE  AT  MARRIAGE. 

stated,  that  the  probabilities  of  marriage  under  the  age  of  20  years  are 
nearly  fifteen  times  as  great  with  females  as  they  are  with  males,  and  that 
between  the  ages  of  20  and  25  they  are  much  nearer  equal,  though  still 
somewhat  in  favor  of  the  female ;  but  after  the  age  of  25,  till  death,  the 
probabilities  of  marriage  are  about  two  to  one  in  favor  of  the  male. 

"  Again  we  perceive  above,  that  of  all  females  married,  the  chances 
that  this  interesting  event  will  take  place  prior  to  the  age  of  20,  are  about 
as  one  to  four  of  all  the  probabilities  that  they  will  ever  marry ;  that  is, 
when  a  female  arrives  at  the  age  of  20  years  and  is  unmarried,  one  quarter 
of  the  probabilities  of  her  ever  being  married  are  gone.  If  she  passes  to 
the  age  of  25  unmarried,  nearly  three  quarters  of  her  probabilities  are  lost, 
and  if  she  is  unmarried  at  the  age  of  30,  she  has  passed  nearly  nine  tenths 

0 

of  her  chances  of  ever  becoming  a  wife.  The  case  is  different  with 
males,  more  than  one-half  of  whose  marriages  occur  subsequent  to  the 
age  of  25.  But  the  period  of  life  between  20  and  25  appears  the 
most  probable  of  all  the  quinquennial  periods  of  matrimonial  alliances  to 
both  sexes."* 

The  returns  from  Kentucky  show  that  of  the  10,106  females  who  were 
married  in  1852  and  1853,  4397  were  under  20,  and  3,791  between  20  and 
25.  From  this  it  appears  that  of  all  the  females  whose  marriages  were  re 
turned,  43.24  per  cent,  were  under  the  age  of  twenty,  and  37.29  per  cent, 
between  the  ages  of  twenty  and  twenty-live,  or  80.53  per  cent,  under  the 
age  of  twenty-five.  In  Massachusetts  but  24.40  per  cent,  of  the  females 
were  married  under  20,  and  46.98  per  cent,  between  20  and  25,  or  71.38 
per  cent,  under  the  age  of  twenty -five. 

These  tables  indicate  a  very  marked  difference  between  the  Northern 
and  Southern  portions  of  the  Union,  in  regard  to  marriage,  if  Massachusetts 


*  8th  Massachusetts  Registration  Report,  p.  99-100. 


IN    DIFFERENT    LATHl'DES.  97 

is  to  be  considered  a  type  of  the  former,  and  Kentucky  of  the  latter,  which 
must  manifest  itself  in  all  the  future  movements  of  population,  seriously 
affecting  their  births  and  deaths,  and  influencing  in  a  very  decided  manner 
the  relative  probabilities  of  life  among  the  natives  of  the  one  or  the  other 
sections  of  the  United  States. 

A  comparison,  instituted  by  Mr.  Shattuck,  between  persons  contracting 
marriage  in  Massachusetts  and  Belgium,  for  the  first  time,  from  dates 
already  given,  shows  the  average  age  in  the  two  places  to  be— 

Males.  Females. 

Belgium,  .  .        .        29.47  27.43 

Massachusetts,    .        .        .  25.84  22.69 

» 

The  elements  upon  which  this  computation  was  made,  are  derived  from 
the  Massachusetts  Returns  for  1845,  and  those  of  Belgium  for  1841. 

A  similar  one,  based  upon  the  Kentucky  returns,  shows  the  average 
age  at  marriage  to  be— 

Males.  Females. 

23.98  21.03 

These  tables  show  that  in  Belgium  more  men  and  women  marry  be 
tween  the  ages  of  twenty-five  and  thirty,  and  in  Massachusetts,  between 
twenty  and  twenty-five,  than  at  any  other  period  of  life.  In  Kentucky, 
more  women  marry  below  twenty,  and  more  men  between  twenty  and 
twenty-five,  than  at  any  other  age.  Massachusetts  is  thus  made  to  occupy 
an  intermediate  position  between  Belgium  on  the  one  hand,  and  Kentucky 
upon  the  other.  The  average  age  at  marriage  is  found  steadily  to  decline, 
so  as  to  present  the  remarkable  difference  of  5.49  years  among  the  males, 
and  6.40  years  among  the  females,  between  Belgium  and  Kentucky. 

A  natural  deduction  from  these  premises  is,  that  as  women  marry 
earlier,  the  number  of  children  will  be  greater,  and  the  sum  of  those 
12 


98  PHYSIOLOGICAL    LAWS   IN 

who  attain  to  maturity  less  than  in  those  countries  whose  marriages  arc 
contracted  at  a  more  mature  period.  How  far  this  result  may  be  modified 
by  a  lower  latitude,  and  a  consequent  increase  of  temperature,  the  means 
are  not  at  hand  for  determining. 

The  principle  is  well  established  in  physiology,  that  the  human  body 
matures  much  sooner  in  warm  countries  than  in  cold,  and  that  the  female  in 
the  former  reaches  a  physical  development  which  enables  her  to  assume  the 
functions  of  a  mother,  at  a  much  earlier  age  than  in  higher  latitudes.  In 
the  tropical  regions  of  Asia,  for  example,  the  female  reaches  a  point  of  de 
velopment  at  eight  which  in  the  more  temperate  latitudes  of  Europe  and 
America  is  not  attained  until  fourteen.  A  system  of  reasoning  therefore, 
which  would  place  the  inhabitants  of  these  extreme  countries  upon  a 
parallel  in  this  regard,  would  be  fallacious,  because  as  nature  has  in  each 
surrounded  the  human  species  by  a  combination  of  circumstances,  which 
are  entirely  different,  the  one  from  the  other,  so  it  has  doubtless  established 
a  series  of  natural  laws  to  govern  and  regulate  the  movements  of  the  human 
race  in  each  different  latitude,  or  variety  of  climate  under  which  they  may 
be  placed. 

Were  it  not  for  this  compensation  man  must  necessarily  have  been 
restricted  to  one  particular  belt  of  the  earth's  surface,  instead  of  covering  it 
all  with  his  footsteps,  and  claiming  the  whole  for  his  dominion.  A  limit  is 
thus  denned  to  the  animal  and  the  vegetable  kingdoms.  The  lion  and  the 
elephant  are  never  found  to  inhabit  the  same  latitude  as  the  ox  and  the 
sheep,  nor  arc  the  latter  ever  associated  in  companionship  with  the  rein 
deer  and  the  Polar  bear.  The  banana  and  pine-apple  never  flourish  in  a 
temperate  region,  nor  do  the  apple  and  peach  survive  transplanting  to  the 
frigid  zone.  In  this  extensive  department  of  nature,  a  particular  place  is 
assigned  to  each  distinct  species  of  either  kingdom,  admirably  adapted  to 
the  wants  of  its  being,  or  the  purposes  it  is  intended  to  subserve. 


WARM    AND    TEMPERATE    LATITUDES.  09 

Man  alone  is  endowed  with  a  capacity  for  universal  migration.  Pos 
sessing  no  natural  covering  of  his  own,  he  is  enabled  in  each  latitude  to 
adapt  to  himself  that  which  is  best  suited  to  the  climate.  In  the  frigid 
zone  he  invests  himself  with  the  skins  of  animals,  covered  with  thick  fur ; 
in  the  temperate  latitudes,  he  fabricates  a  clothing  from  the  wool  of  the 
sheep  ;  and  under  the  influence  of  the  intense  heat  of  the  tropics  selects  a 
light  linen  texture,  or  almost  entirely  dispenses  with  the  use  of  external 
garments. 

These  analogies  are  introduced  for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting  the  great 
variety  of  circumstances  under  which  man  may  be  placed,  and  to  serve  as 
a  caution  against  too  hasty  a  generalization.  It  is  true  that  the  limits  of  the 
United  States  do  not  embrace  the  extremes  of  climate  and  temperature  to 
which  allusion  has  been  made  ;  nor  do  the  States  of  Massachusetts  and  Ken 
tucky  represent  its  extremes.  It  does,  however,  possess  in  this  regard  a 
range  of  latitude  and  variety  of  climate,  not  only  more  extensive  than  any 
other  civilized  country,  but  nearly  equal  to  that  of  all  the  countries  of 
Europe,  whose  governments  possess  a  system  of  registration. 

Moreover,  as  the  changes  of  temperature  arc  much  greater  in  the 
United  States  than  in  those  European  countries,  a  knowledge  of  the  move 
ments  of  whose  populations  are  revealed  through  their  population  returns, 
it  follows  that  the  changes  of  climate  from  warm  to  cold,  and  the  reverse, 
are  reached  in  traversing  a  less  number  of  degrees  of  latitude  in  the  United 
States  than  in  Europe  ;  and  hence  while  Massachusetts  has  all  the  character 
istics  of  a  northern  climate,  without  its  greatest  intensity,  so  Kentucky  pos 
sesses,  in  a  modified  degree,  the  climatic  influences  of  a  Southern  latitude. 

It  must  also  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  climate  of  Europe  and  the. 
United  States  are  so  different  as  not  to  be  represented  by  the  same  parallels 
of  latitude,  and  it  has  hence  been  seen  that  notwithstanding  their  dif 
ferences  in  this  respect  the  South  of  France  and  Kentucky,  as  southern 


100  IMPORTANCE    OF 

localities,  and  Sweden  and  Massachusetts  as  northern  ones,  bear  a  marked 
correspondence  with  each  other. 

If  these  observations  have  any  force,  they  would  lead  to  the  belief  that 
the  striking  differences  which  have  thus  far  been  seen  to  exist  in  the  move 
ments  of  the  population  of  Massachusetts  and  Kentucky,  are  not  accidental, 
but  in  accordance  with  the  laws  which  regulate  and  control  them  respectively 
—that  these  laws  have  shades  of  variation  as  they  are  made  to  operate  upon 
the  inhabitants  of  various  latitudes,  and  that  similar  results  are  not  uniformly 
to  be  expected — that  while  nature  has  provided  in  the  most  wonderful 
manner  for  the  maintenance  of  the  species  and  the  preservation  of  a  just 
equilibrium  among  the  sexes,  it  has  adopted  different  formulas  to  accom 
plish  this  end  for  different  circumstances. 

This  is  abundantly  manifest  in  the  difference  of  the  rates  of  mortality 
between  town  and  country  populations,  and  the  manner  in  which  after  a 
high  mortality  nature  repairs  the  loss  by  an  acceleration  of  the  functions 
of  reproduction,  so  that  the  number  lost  by  death  is  compensated  for  by  the 
number  of  births.  Now,  if  these  differences  are  developed  under  different 
circumstances  in  the  same  locality,  it  is  fair  to  infer  that  they  are  more 
likely  to  be  developed  in  places  whose  latitude  and  climate  have  little  or  no 
correspondence  with  each  other.  Nothing  short  of  an  accurate  and  uniform 
system  of  registration  applied  to  every  part  of  the  United  States,  and 
continued  for  a  period  sufficiently  long  to  correct  the  errors  which  will 
unavoidably  become  associated  with  it  can  determine  this  question.  In  the 
meantime  there  is  sufficient  evidence  to  show  that  the  laws  which  regulate 
the  population  of  any  given  place  in  Europe,  as  Geneva,  are  not  more 
admissible  of  general  application  in  the  United  States,  than  they  are  in 
Europe,  although  a  single  place  might  doubtless  be  found  where  the  iden 
tity  of  movement  would  be  as  exact  as  in  those  of  the  places  already  put 
in  comparison  with  each  other. 


EXTENSIVE    OBSERVATIONS.  101 

It  is  because  these  rules  are  not  general  in  application,  that  whenever 
any  considerable  sum  is  at  stake  upon  the  expectation  or  value  of  life, 
observations  are  made  from  various  points  and  comparisons  instituted 
between  them.  Milne  did  not  rest  satisfied  with  the  quiet  little  town  of 
Carlisle,  embosomed  in  the  centre  of  rural  life,  in  England,  or  the  accurate 
observations  of  that  excellent  old  gentleman  who  officiated  as  its  medical 
man  (Dr.  Heysham),  but  extended  his  enquiries  on  the  one  side  to  Sweden, 
and  on  the  other  to  the  south  of  France,  and  after  becoming  enriched  with 
the  labors  of  Nicander  and  Wargentin,  in  Sweden,  and  Mourgue,  De- 
parcieux,  St.  Cyran,  and  Duvillard,  in  France,  and  in  his  mathematical 
deductions  by  Euler,  La  Place  and  Halley,  produced  his  valuable  work  on 
Annuities,  which  is  chiefly  important  because  its  range  of  enquiry  is  general, 
and  its  deductions  extensive. 

The  ratio  of  marriages  to  the  population  is  found  to  vary  in  dif 
ferent  places.  The  Massachusetts  returns  give  an  average  of  one  marriage 
to  every  102  inhabitants  of  the  entire  State.  In  Suffolk  county,  in  which 
Boston  is  located,  the  number  was  one  in  G4  ;  while  in  Worcester  county 
the  number  was  one  in  104,  and  in  Dukes  county  one  in  151. 

The  registration  report  of  Kentucky,  in  alluding  to  the  number  of 
marriages  which  took  place  in  that  State,  says :  "It  appears  that  there  were 
7,430  marriages  in  the  State  during  the  year  1852,  of  which  5,105  are 
returned  by  the  assessors,  leaving  2,325  or  39  per  cent,  unaccounted  for. 
We  had,  therefore,  one  marriage  to  every  102.92  white  persons  in  the 
State.  The  proportion  varied  very  much  in  different  counties.  In  Harri 
son  and  Jefferson  the  proportion  was  one  in  50.34,  and  54.90  respectively; 
whilst  in  Simpson  and  Livingston,  the  proportion  was  one  in  239  and  216 
respectively."* 

The  clerks  of  the  respective  counties  in  the  State  of  Kentucky,  as  of 

*   1st  Registration  Report  of  Kentucky,  \>.  105. 


102  MARRIAGE   RETURNS 

many  of  the  other  States,  issue  a  license  authorizing  the  contemplated  mar 
riage  to  take  place,  which  certificate  is  presented  to  the  clergyman  who 
performs  the  marriage  ceremony.  A  record  of  the  issue  of  the  certificate  is 
always  made  in  the  clerk's  office,  by  Avhich  means  it  is  possible  to  determine 
the  number  of  marriages  which  have  taken  place.  In  this  instance  it 
appears  to  have  furnished  a  check  upon  the  records  of  the  assessors,  and 
shows  that  they  failed  to  return  39  per  cent,  of  the  marriages  which  actually 
took  place.  The  correction,  it  will  be  observed,  is  confined  to  the  white  po 
pulation,  and  properly,  because  all  the  marriages  noted  were  among  this 
portion  of  the  population ;  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Kentucky,  and  indeed 
of  all  slave  States,  not  recognising  any  legal  ceremony,  nor  requiring  any 
registration  or  certificate,  in  marriages  among  the  colored  inhabitants. 
Similar  omissions,  as  to  numbers,  appear  to  have  been  made  in  the  succeed 
ing  year,  so  that  it  is  probable  that  the  number  of  marriages  which  actually 
took  place  among  the  white  population  of  the  State,  in  two  years,  was 
about  15,996,  or  one  marriage  to  every  1QO  of  the  white  population.  In 
regard  to  those  marriages  actually  reported,  there  appears  to  exist  no  reason 
to  doubt  the  accuracy  of  the  returns  as  to  age,  or  at  least  that  they  form 
as  near  an  approximation  as  can  reasonably  be  expected. 

As  to  the  marriage  returns  embraced  in  the  census  for  1850,  Mr.  De 
Bow  remarks :  "  The  ratio  of  marriages  is  very  nearly  one  person  married 
to  every  two  hundred  persons,  varying  between  the  States  from  one  to  316, 
as  in  Delaware,  one  to  150,  as  in  New  Mexico,  as  one  in  192,  as  in  Massa 
chusetts,  a  sufficient  proof  of  the  incompleteness  of  the  returns."*  It  was 
hardly  to  be  expected  that  in  this  particular  the  census  should  afford 
perfectly  reliable  information,  because  the  marshals  whose  duty  it  was  to 
gather  these  statistics,  entered  upon  their  task,  without  previous  guide  or 

*  Compendium  of  U.  S.  Census,  1850,  p.  104. 


IN    DIFFERENT    STATES. 


103 


direction.  The  returns,  as  given  below,  although  acknowlcdgedly  incom 
plete,  are  introduced  as  the  best  standard  of  comparison  with  those  gathered 
in  the  several  States  at  hand. 


Married. 

2,613 

.     3,719 

31,465 

.     5,275 

22,328 

.  19,858 

1,327 

.     2,005 

7,872 

.    2,232 

2,653 

.     8,163 

3,015 

39 

916 

.       168 
404 

197,029 


Neither  the  marriage  returns  of  Connecticut,  which  arc  included  in 
the  Registration  returns,  nor  those  of  New  Jersey,  which  arc  computed  at 
4,242,  appear  to  be  more  reliable  than  those  returned  by  the  marshals,  and 
included  in  the  United  States  census,  from  which  it  will  be  seen  by  com 
parison  they  differ  largely. 

The  returns  of  Massachusetts  and  Kentucky,  as  corrected,  furnish  toler 
ably  correct  information  as  to  the  relative  proportion  of  marriages  to  their 
respective  populations.  It  would  be  just  to  apply  them  to  the  whole  Union, 


States,  <tc. 

Married. 

States,  <fcc. 

Alabama, 

.     3,940 

New  Hampshire, 

Arkansas, 

2,112 

New  Jersey,    . 

California, 



New  York, 

Columbia,  District  of 

373 

North  Carolina, 

Connecticut,    . 

.     3,213 

Ohio, 

Delaware, 

564 

Pennsylvania, 

Florida, 

431 

Rhode  Island,    . 

Georgia, 

4,977 

South  Carolina, 

Illinois 

.     9,183 

Tennessee, 

Indiana, 

12,423 

Texas,  . 

Iowa, 

.     1,824 

Vermont, 

Kentucky, 

8,091 

Virginia, 

Louisiana, 

.     2,890 

Wisconsin, 

Maine, 
Maryland, 
Massachusetts,    . 
Michigan, 

4,886 
.    3,703 
10,347 
.    4,257 

CD  f  Minnesota,  . 

0 

'g  1  New  Mexico, 
•|  I  Oregon, 
H  [Utah,      . 

Mississippi, 
Missouri, 

2,774 
.     6,989 

Total, 

104  RATIO   IN    DIFFERENT    COUNTIES. 

as  fair  representatives  of  distinct  portions,  which  would  give  a  ratio  of  one 
marriage  to  each  101  of  the  population.  This  proportion  is  much  greater 
than  among  the  populations  of  any  of  the  European  States,  Avhich  have  ren 
dered  returns,  except  Eussia,  to  whose  population  in  some  respects  that  of 
the  United  States  bears  a  strong  affinity. 

"  Our  returns  (remarks  the  Rhode  Island  report)  are  inadequate  to 
show  what  has  been  the  real  proportion  of  marriages  to  the  population. 
But  those  who  are  acknowledged  and  recorded  as  having  been  made  happy 
in  this  way,  are,  (if  we  take  the  population  from  the  census  of  1850,)  in 
the  last  seven  months  of  1853,  at  the  rate  of  one  for  every  91.99  in  a 
year,  and  in  1854,  one  for  every  70.4G.  From  the  whole  population, 
however,  AVC  ought,  perhaps,  to  subtract  that  of  towns  which  made  no 
returns  of  marriages,  so  as  to  base  our  calculation  on  the  '  represented 
population.'  Doing  this,  the  ratio  would  be,  for  the  last  seven  months  of 
1853,  at  the  rate  of  one  to  74.36  in  a  year,  and  for  1854,  one  person 
married  in  every  64.71.  In  the  first  report,  it  was  one  to  81.636.  * 

In  England,  there  were  living  to  each  marriage,       .         .         .  131  persons. 

Austria,      "        "        "          "  "  ...  124      " 

France,        "         "         "  "  ...  121       " 

Prussia,       "         "         «          «  «  ...  113 

Eussia,       "        "  "  "  .  90 


... 


*  2d  Registration  Report  of  Rhode  Island,  p.  23. 


STATISTICS   OF   MORTALITY.  105 

LI  It  U  A  ..'  l    > 

rNlVEKSITY   OF 

; 

CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  X. 

MORTALITY. 

The  statistics  of  mortality  are  much  more  palpable  in  their  immediate 
results,  to  those  who  do  not  directly  concern  themselves  with  the  move 
ments  of  population,  than  cither  those  of  births  or  marriages,  and  they  have 
consequently  not  only  attracted  a  larger  share  of  public  attention,  but  have 
likewise  induced  a  larger  amount  of  municipal  and  State  legislation.  There 
is  scarcely  to  be  found  a  populous  town,  in  any  country,  marked  by  a  high 
degree  of  civilization,  which  does  not  preserve  a  record  more  or  less  perfect 
of  the  deaths  which  take  place  among  its  inhabitants. 

In  most  of  the  populous  places  in  the  United  States,  these  mortuary 
registers  cover  a  comparatively  large  number  of  years,  and  it  is  therefore 
no  difficult  task  to  ascertain  the  rate  of  mortality  peculiar  to  each,  and  with 
some  degree  of  precision  the  ages  upon  which  this  mortality  falls.  The 
outlets  of  human  life,  in  the  guise  of  various  diseases,  are  likewise  taken 
notice  of,  to  a  sufficient  extent,  to  mark  the  influence  of  the  locality,  if  any 
peculiarity  exists,  upon  its  inhabitants,  and  to  determine  the  species  of 
disease  most  fatal  to  its  population. 

In  'country  districts,  previous  to  the  establishment  of  the  system  of 

registration,  so  far  as  it  at  present  prevails,  as  a  general  rule,  no  mortuary 
13 


10G  MEANS    OF    DETERMINING   MORTALITY 

records  were  kept,  and  there  consequently  existed  lio  means  of  determining 
their  mortality,  or  standard  by  which  the  relative  value  of  life  in  town  and 
country  could  be  measured.  The  only  information  at  present  in  existence 
concerning  the  number  of  deaths  which  take  place  in  the  rural  districts  of 
the  United  States,  is  to  be  found  in  the  returns  of  the  States  which  have 
adopted  a  system  of  registration,  and  the  marshal's  returns  to  the  general 
government,  included  in  the  census  for  1850. 

As  to  the  first  of  these  means  of  determining  the  rate  of  mortality 
among  the  rural" population  of  the  United  States,  it  is  perhaps  sufficient  to 
say  that  in  but  seven  out  of  the  thirty-one  States  comprising  the  Union,  is 
this  system  of  registration  in  operation  at  all,  and  in  some  of  those  in  which 
it  does  exist  the  returns  are  so  imperfectly  made  as  to  deprive  them  of  much 
of  their  value. 

In  regard  to  the  enumeration,  as  made  by  the  agents  of  the  general 
government  when  taking  the  census  of  1850,  it  is  quite  certain  that  it  does 
not  include  all  the  deaths  which  occurred  during  the  year  prior  to  June  1st, 
1850.  This  subject  has  already  been  alluded  to,  and  some  reasons  have 
been  given  for  fixing  the  number  of  omitted  deaths  at  a  certain  increased 
ratio  above  those  enumerated. 

In  addition  to  the  bills  of  mortality  kept  by  the  various  cities  in  the 
United  States,  and  which  furnish  an  excellent  means  of  determining  the 
error  in  the  census  returns,  and  of  correcting  it,  the  registration  returns  of 
at  least  two  of  the  States  supply  valuable  data,  and  constitute  excellent 
standards  of  comparison.  There  is  no  more  reason  for  refusing  credence  to 
the  facts  connected  with  the  deaths  reported  by  the  takers  of  the  census,  so 
far  as  age,  and  name  of  disease  are  concerned,  than  there  is  to  any  other  of 
the  various  departments  of  enquiry  which  came  within  their  cognizance.  In 
the  collection  of  facts,  as  extensive  as  those  of  the  enumeration  of  the  popu 
lation  of  a  country  embracing  many  millions  of  inhabitants  scattered  over 


IN    THE    UNITED    STATES. 


107 


a  vast  area,  or  of  the  various  incidents  connected  with  this  population, 
whether  pertaining  to  industrial  statistics,  or  the  increase  of  their  numbers 
by  birth,  and  their  decrease  by  death,  extreme  accuracy  is  not  to  be 
expected.  A  certain  margin  is  always  left  to  that  inseparable  incident  to 
all  human  affairs  and  all  human  reasoning — probability,  which  it  is  the 
province  of  mathematics  to  bridle  and  reduce  to  subjection. 

Those  fluctuations  of  population,  which  are  affected  by  births  and 
marriages,  with  much  less  reliable  data  than  is  furnished  by  the  records  of 
mortality  within  reach,  have,  it  is  thought,  been  determined  with  consider 
able  precision,  and  there  exists  no  reason  why  similar  results  may  not  be 
obtained  so  far  as  mortality  is  concerned. 

The  aggregate  of  all  the  deaths  included  in  the  mortality  statistics  of 
the  census  for  1850,  distributed  among  the  States  in  which  they  occurred, 
is  given  in  the  annexed  statement :— 


STATES. 

Males. 

Females. 

Aggregate 
Deaths.    , 

STATES. 

Males. 

Females. 

Abrogate 
Deaths. 

4  812 

4279 

9  010 

6  854 

5,438 

1°  "9'2 

1  654 

1  3fi7 

3  021 

o  038 

2,193 

4  °31 

794 

111 

905 

2  513 

2,952 

6  465 

Columbia,  District  of.  .  .  . 

427 

419 

840 

New  York  

04  44(j 

21,154 

45  600 

2921 

2  857 

5  781 

5'''->1 

4,938 

10  165 

644 

565 

1  209 

Ohio 

15  818 

13,139 

28  957 

507 

494 

931 

15  53(> 

13  019 

28  551 

5  176 

474'! 

9  925 

1  i(j3 

1  078 

2  241 

Illinois  

ii  :;'.••, 

5293 

ll'759 

4  207 

3,839 

8  047 

5,826 

12  708 

6  174 

6,696 

11  875 

1  140 

9O4 

0  044 

Texas                       .  .  . 

1  641 

1  368 

3  057 

7  983 

7  050 

16  033 

1  534 

i  .,•<., 

3  129 

Louisiana  

7,351 

4,605 

11  950 

9735 

9,324 

19059 

3,882 

3  752 

7  584 

1  675 

1,328 

''  903 

5  127 

4494 

9621 

19 

10 

29 

9  H78 

9426 

19  404 

580 

577 

1  157 

Michigan  

24°U 

20')2 

4  515 

32 

15 

47 

4  029 

4  092 

8  721 

Utah  

131 

108 

239 

Of  the  323,023   deaths   included  in  the  foregoing  abstract,   172,878 
were  males,  and  150,145  females.     The  difference  between  the  male  and 


108  MALE    AND    FEMALE    MORTALITY 

female  deaths  being  22,733.  The  ratio  per  cent,  of  the  male  deaths  to  the 
males  living  being  1.4G,  and  of  the  female  deaths  to  the  living  females, 
1.32:- 

To  100  deaths  of  both  sexes. 


Whole  No.  Males.  Females.  Males.  Females. 

323,023  172,878  150,145  54.02  45.98 

The  proportion  of  deaths  would  be  as  1,000  males  to  919  females,  or  a 
difference  of  81  ;  which  corresponds  tolerably  well  with  similar  observations 
made  in  different  countries, — the  difference  in  some  cases  being  somewhat 
over,  and  in  others  below,  that  observed  in  the  United  States. 

This  excess  of  male  over  female  deaths  is  of  almost  universal  occur 
rence.  The  returns  of  some  of  the  States,  however,  show  nearly  an  equal 
number  of  deaths  for  each  sex,  or,  as  in  the  case  of  New  Hampshire  and 
Vermont,  a  preponderance  of  female  deaths  over  those  of  the  male  sex.  Tu 
the  former  of  these  States  the  aggregate  number  of  deaths  was  4,231,  of 
which  2,038  were  males  and  2,193  females,  and  in  the  latter  3,129,  of 
which  1,534  were  males  and  1,595  females. 

The  returns  of  Massachusetts  give  an  aggregate  of  19,404  deaths,  with 
a  preponderance  of  male  deaths.  The  registration  report  increases  the 
number  for  1849  to  20,423,  of  which  10,019  were  males,  10,208  females, 
and  19G  of  unknown  sex.  The  report,  in  commenting  upon  this  peculiar 
fact,  states:  "We  hear  notice  that  a  majority  among  the  deaths  are  females. 
This  is  true  in  reference  to  the  mortality  of  the  whole  State.  In  the 
country  districts  alone,  however,  the  preponderance  of  female  mortality  is 
so  much  greater  than  it  is  in  the  whole  State,  that  it  casts  the  balance  on 
the  other  side  in  the  cities.  If  we  knew  the  per  cent  which  the  number 
among  the  living  of  each  sex  bears  to  the  other,  in  the  cities  and  in  the 
country,  this  might  perhaps  be  accounted  for  in  part,  or  in  whole.  It  is  to 
be  presumed,  that  the  female  sex  predominates  in  the  State,  and  to  a 


IN    DIFFERENT    STATES. 


109 


greater  degree  in  the  country  than  in  the  city.  This  is  to  be  inferred  from 
the  fact,  that  although  in  18-49,  among  the  births  52.06  per  cent,  were 
males,  and  47.94  per  cent,  females,  in  the  State,  among  the  deaths  under 
five  years  of  age  53.82  per  cent,  were  males,  and  4G.18  only  were  females ; 
and  that  more  males  than  females  resort  from  the  country  to  the  city  as  resi 
dents,  while  the  proportion  of  the  sexes,  between  those  who  leave  the  State 
and  those  who  enter  it,  is  probably  such  as  to  produce  no  great  effect  in 
this  particular."* 

In  the  accompanying  table  the  deaths  which  occurred  under  five  years 
of  age,  and  the  aggregate  for  1849,  are  so  placed  as  to  show  the  relative 
proportion  of  those  who  died  under  five  years,  and  their  sex,  from  which  it 
would  appear  that  although  the  whole  number  of  deaths  of  all  ages  in 
cluded  a  greater  number  of  females  than  males,  yet  among  those  which  took 
place  in  the  first  five  years,  the  excess  was  among  the  males  in  the  propor 
tion,  for  the  whole  State,  53.82  per  cent,  to  46.18  of  female  deaths  :— 


LOCALITIES, 

BlRTlIS- 

DEATHS  CSDER  FIVE  YEARS. 

WHOLE  NofBER  OF  DEATHS. 

Number, 

Proportion. 

Number. 

Proportion. 

Number. 

Propo 
M. 

rtlon. 

^ 
State  
City  

M. 

F. 

M. 

F. 

M. 

F. 

M. 

F. 

M. 

F. 

F. 

18,829 

5344 
7985 

12,273 
5106 
7167 

52.06 
51.14 

52.70 

47.94 
48.86 
47.30 

4169 
2117 

•  >,,;,._, 

3577 
1875 
1702 

53.82 
53.03 
54.66 

46.18 
46.97 
45.34 

10,019 
4710 
5309 

10,208 
4617 
5591 

49.53 
50.50 
48.70 

50.47 
49.50 
51.30 

"  This  abstract  shows  that  the  great  excess  of  male  mortality  occurs  in 
the  earlier  ages.  Had  we  taken  these  who  died  under  one  year  old,  the  ex 
cess  would  have  been  still  greater.  The  disparity  will  be  seen  as  follows: — 


STATE. 

Crry. 

COUNTRY. 

Number. 

Proportion. 

Number. 

Proportion. 

Number. 

Proportion. 

Deaths  under  one      )      Male    

1994 
1558 

66.13 
43.87 

996 
810 

55.14 
44.86 

998 
748 

57.16 
42.84 

year  of  age,         j      Femalea,.... 

436 

12.26 

186 

10.28 

250 

14.32 

*  8th  Registration  Report  for  Massachusetts,  p.  109. 


110  MALE  AND  FEMALE  MORTALITY 

"  The  excess  of  males  was,  in  every  10,000— 

-n-  ,>  Deaths  under    Deaths  under         Total  of 

one  year.         five  years.  Deaths. 

In  the  whole  State, 412  1226  764  —  94* 

In  the  Cities, 228  1028  606  100 

In  the  Country, 540  1432  932  —260* 

'  There  are  various  causes  of  death  which  press  with  unequal  force  upon 
the  sexes.  Those  which  seem  to  be  the  severest  upon  the  male,  are  dis 
eases  of  brain,  except  insanity ;  diseases  of  the  lungs,  except  consumption  ; 
diseases  of  the  heart,  liver,  most  forms  of  fever,  and  the  various  causes  of 
death,  by  violence.  The  mortuary  tables  of  the  last  and  former  years  also 
indicate  quite  clearly  that  those  diseases  which  are  more  or  less  peculiar  to 
the  young,  such  as  cholera  infantum,  croup,  hydrocephalus  or  water  on  the 
brain,  infantile  diseases,  and  ulceration  or  canker,  select  a  major  part  of 
their  victims  from  among  the  male  population.  The  majority  of  deaths 
from  cholera  were  males,  while  those  from  dysentery  and  typhus  were 
nearly  equal  as  to  sexes,  "f 

The  annexed  table,  which  exhibits  the  relative  proportion  of  the  sexes 
at  all  ages  for  the  year  included  in  the  estimate  of  deaths  as  given  above, 
will  enable  a  comparison  to  be  instituted  into  the  relative  number  of  the 
living  and  the  dead  : — 


• 

Females  to 

Females  to 

Ages. 

100  Males. 

Ages. 

100  Males. 

Under  1, 

50  to  60,     . 

110.4 

1  to  5, 

98.2 

60  to  70, 

.      118.3 

5  to  10,       . 

99.1 

70  to  80,    . 

128.5 

10  to  15, 

.       97.7 

80  to  90,        ... 

.      146.4 

15  to  20,     . 

114.6 

90  to  100,  . 

199.4 

20  to  30, 

.      106.4 

100  and  over, 

.      225.0 

30  to  40,     . 

96.5 

Unknown, 

17.4 

40  to  50, 

99.8 

*  Excess  of  Females 

f  Ibid.  p.  110. 

IN    DIFFERENT    COUNTRIES.  ill 

Of  all  the  994,514  inhabitants  of  Massachusetts  in  1850,  505,997  were 
females,  and  488,517  males,  being  an  excess  of  17,480  females  over  males. 

The  population  of  the  District  of  Columbia  consists  of  18,494  males, 
and  19,447  females,  or  an  excess  of  953  females.  The  deaths  which  oc 
curred  in  1849,  as  taken  from  the  Census  Returns,  were  846,  of  which  427 
were  males,  and  419  females. 

For  the  purpose  of  enabling  a  more  general  comparison  to  be  made,  a 
table  is  presented  containing  a  summary  view  of  the  progress  of  population 
in  the  Kingdom  of  Wurtemberg,  which,  like  Massachusetts  and  the  District 
of  Columbia,  contains  a  larger  female  than  male  population  :— 


WURTEMBEKG.* 

POPULATION. 

DEATHS. 

Year. 

Males. 

Females. 

Total. 

Males. 

Females. 

1833, 

773,561 

813,887 

1,587,448 

26,428 

26,066 

1834, 

776,965 

816,102 

1,593,067 

36,451 

35,252 

1835, 

786,619 

825,180 

1,611,799 

25,660 

45,505 

183G, 

793,973 

832,692 

1,626,665 

28,481 

26,663 

18S7, 

798,259 

836,264 

1,634,523  ' 

31,309 

30,402 

1838, 

806,311 

843,528 

1,649,839 

28,885 

27,540 

1839, 

815,057 

851,342 

1,666,399 

27,151 

26,327 

1840, 

824,457 

858,711 

1,683,168 

26,883 

26,216 

1841, 

831,656 

865,560 

1,697,216 

29,763 

28,598 

1842, 

840,339 

873,179 

1,713,518 

29,895 

28,976 

It  will  be  seen,  by  an  examination  of  these  returns,  that  notwithstand 
ing  the  fact  that  in  Wurtemberg  the  female  preponderates  over  the  male 
sex,  yet  the  largest  number  of  deaths  uniformly  occur  among  the  male  por 
tion  of  the  population. 

From  these  comparisons  it  would  appear  that  in  Massachusetts,  and  in 
all  probability  in  the  contiguous  States,  a  different  rate  of  mortality  affect 
ing  the  relative  proportion  of  male  and  female  deaths  occurs,  from  that 

*  Count  Beroldigen. 


112 


MALE    AND    FEMALE    MORTALITY 


which  is  presented  by  the  returns  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  the 
Kingdom  of  Wurtemberg,  and  which  by  comparison  would  probably  be 
found  more  extensively  to  prevail. 

If  no  further  data  were  offered,  than  that  of  the  record  of  the  deaths 
for  1849,  it  might  reasonably  be  inferred  that  the  enumeration  was  erro 
neous  and  unworthy  of  credit ;  but  the  additional  evidence  furnished  by  the 
consecutive  registration  returns  of  twelve  years,  places  this  question  beyond 
the  possibility  of  a  doubt.  These  returns  invariably  show  that  more  female 
than  male  deaths  occur  in  each  successive  year — thus  of  the  20,301  regis 
tered  in  1853,  7,942  were  males,  10,201  females,  and  149  of  unknown  sex, 
being  a  preponderance  of  268  female  deaths.  An  abstract  of  the  deaths  of 
live  years,  including  1849,  already  alluded  to,  and  1853  just  noticed,  shows 
that  of  92,174  deaths,  the  sexes  of  which  were  known,  45,855  were  males, 
and  46,319  females. 

Now,  the  uniformity  of  these  results  is  too  exact,  and  the  period  of 
time  covered  by  the  observations  too  extensive  to  admit  of  any  doubt  as 
to  their  correctness,  and  it  remains  to  be  seen  upon  what  principle  this 
apparent  disparity  can  be  reconciled.  Mr.  Shattuck  has  constructed  a  table 
for  two  years,  which  so  admirably  demonstrates  this  disparity,  that  it  is 
inserted  without  comment :— 


To  EVERY  10,000  MALES  THERE  WERE  FEMALES. 

SHOWINO 
A  DIFFERENCE 

OF 

Born. 

Died. 

In  1  84  1    

0,508 
9,744 

11,241 

10,978 

1,733 
1,234 

1845  

"It  maybe  asked,"  he  remarks,   "what  becomes  of  this  difference? 
The  answer  is  principally  to  be  found  in  the  greater  number  of  males  than 


IN    DIFFERENT    COUNTRIES.  113 

females,  which  the  State  furnishes  to  people  other  parts  of  the  Union,  and 
to  traverse  the  world.  From  the  census  of  New  York  city,  just  published, 
it  appeal's  that  16,006  of  its  inhabitants  were  born  in  New  England,  and 
throughout  all  the  Western  States  New  England  men  are  found.  It  would 
be  an  exceedingly  interesting  enquiry,  how  many  emigrants  have  been  fur 
nished  each  year  by  Massachusetts.  And  if  a  good  system  of  registration 
had  been  in  operation,  we  should  have  been  able  to  show  how  many  have 
gone  hence  to  spread  the  wholesome  influence  of  the  land  of  their  birth  in 
other  States  and  other  regions.  If  every  10,000  births  furnish  1,250 
emigrants,  the  25,000  births  which  have  been  estimated  to  take  place  in 
the  State  annually  would  furnish  over  3,000  to  spend  the  remainder  of  their 
lives  in  other  lands  than  that  of  their  nativity."* 

The  census  for  1850  gives  the  birth-place  of  each  white  inhabitant  of 
the  United  States,  so  far  as  they  could  be  ascertained  ;  and  that  they  have 
been  arrived  at  with  tolerable  correctness  is  evidenced  by  the  fact,  that  of 
19,987,563  inhabitants,  the  places  of  birth  of  all  except  39,146  are  given. 

Of  these,  the  whole  number  of  persons  born  in  Massa 
chusetts  is,  894,818 
Residing  in  "  695,236 


in  other  States,       .  .         .         199,582 

Of  which  there  are  in  Connecticut,  .         .  11,366 

"     "   Maine,  16,535 

"     "   New  Hampshire,  .  18,495 

"     "   Rhode  Island,  11,888 

"     "   Vermont,       .  15,059 

73,343 


In  other  States  and  Territories,     .  126,239 

*  Letter  of  Mr.  Shuttuck  to  the  Secretary  of  State  of  Massachusetts,  p.  81. 
14 


1  1  4  EFFECT    OF    MIGRATION 

From  these  statistics,  as  well  as  those  already  given,  it  is  evident  that 
the  population  of  Massachusetts  has  been  affected  in  the  most  serious 
manner  by  the  extensive  emigration  and  immigration  to  which  it  has  been 
subjected.  There;  is  probably  not  to  be  found  upon  record  an  instance 
of  a  population  in  which  these  two  causes  have  so  effectually  combined  to 
change  the  population  of  an  entire  State  as  that  of  the  one  under  con 
sideration. 

Tt  is  true,  that  in  many  of  the  States  of  the  Union  there  exists  a 
greater  relative  proportion  of  persons  of  foreign  birth,  than  in  that  of  Mas 
sachusetts,  as  in  Wisconsin,  where  the  number  of  these  is  34.94  per  cent., 
or  in  California,  where  it  reaches  24.15,  or  in  the  older  State  of  New  York, 
where  it  amounts  to  21.04  of  the  whole  population,  instead  of  16.18  per 
cent.,  as  in  the  case  of  Massachusetts.  But  notwithstanding  the  immense 
emigration  from  New  York,  which  has  gone  to  swell  the  populations  of 
Ohio,  Michigan,  Wisconsin,  Indiana,  Illinois,  and  the  other  free  States  in 
the  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  or  that  from  Virginia  and  North  Carolina 
which  has  gone  to  people  the  new  slave  States  of  the  Union,  and  which  in 
many  instances  exceeds  in  relative  proportion  that  of  the  emigration  from 
Massachusetts,  yet  in  no  one  has  the  combined  effect  of  the  emigration  and 
immigration  produced  such  palpable  results  in  this  latter  State. 

How  many  natives  of  Massachusetts,  in  quest  of  a  new  home  were 
males,  and  how  many  females,  there  is  no  means  of  determining.  It  is 
highly  probable  that  many  of  those  who  changed  their  residence  for  that 
of  neighboring  States  either  went  in  families,  or  returned  after  a  period  to 
bring  with  them  a  partner  who  had  engaged  their  affections  before  their 
migrations.  Of  these,  the  relative  proportion  of  the  sexes  would  doubtless 
be  the  same  as  was  to  be  found  in  the  State  from  which  they  emigrated. 
Among  those  who  selected  for  themselves  a  residence  in  States  more  remote 
from  at  of  their  birth,  tho  proportion  of  males  was  doubtless  greater  than 


OX    MASSACHUSETTS.  115 

that  of  females,  because  the  occupations  and  habits  of  life  of  the  former  fit. 
them  for  more  extensive  migration  than  the  latter,  who  for  the  most  part 
are  found  to  change  their  abode  under  the  auspices  of  their  male  relatives, 
either  as  parents  or  husbands. 

Judging  from  the  large  number  of  marriages  which  occur  among  the 
residents  of  different  States,  as  shown  by  the  census  returns  for  1850,  it  is 
probable  that  comparatively  few  who  were  unmarried  when  they  left  home 
and  made  their  residence  in  a  remote  State,  ever  returned  to  marry,  and 
hence  as  the  emigration  from,  is  greater  than  the  emigration  to,  most  of  the 
New  England  States,  and  doubtless  embraces  a  larger  proportion  of  males 
than  females,  the  native  female  population  must  necessarily  be  in  the 
ascendant. 

Now,  what  effect  these  circumstances  have  upon  the  direct  question  at 
issue,  the  relative  proportion  of  deaths  among  the  two  sexes,  as  made 
manifest  by  the  returns  of  Massachusetts,  is  left  for  each  to  determine  for 
himself.  It  may  be  proper  to  state,  that  although  no  entire  registration 
district  in  England  exhibits  a  larger  proportion  of  female  than  male  deaths, 
yet  single  counties,  in  rural  districts,  as  Northamptonshire  and  Bedford 
shire,  among  the  South  Midland  Counties ;  Suffolk,  among  the  Eastern ; 
Wiltshire  and  Dorsetshire,  among  the  Southwestern  ;  and  North  Riding,  in 
Yorkshire,  are  among  those  whose  female  deaths  are  more  numerous  than 
males.  The  Austrian  Provinces  of  Illyria  Corinthia,  and  Illyria  Carniolia, 
as  well  as  the  Prussian  Province  of  Westphalia,  likewise  show  an  excess  of 
female  deaths. 

• 

This  excess  of  female  mortality,  wherever  it  exists,  is  exclusively 
confined  to  rural  populations.  The  returns  from  all  populous  places,  in  the 
United  States,  show,  that  large  towns  arc  more  inimical  to  male  than  female 
life,  and  that  the  proportion  of  deaths  to  the  living  of  each  sex  among  males 
is  greater  than  among  females.  In  this  respect  the  New  England  States, 


1  If)  COMPARATIVE    MORTALITY 

.  where  an  excess  of  female  mortality  alone  is  found,  do  not  form  an  excep 
tion  to  the  general  rule. 

Another  enquiry  of  equal  importance  with  the  one  just  discussed,  is  the 
relative  proportion  of  mortality  between  the  two  sexes  at  different  periods 
of  life,  for  the  purpose  of  elucidating  which  the  following  table  is  intro 
duced,  giving  the  number  of  males  and  females  who  died  at  each  age 
throughout  the  United  States,  as  returned  by  the  census  of  1850  : 

Males.  Females. 

Under  1,      .  .                  29,569  24,69G 

1  and  under  5,  36,349  32,364 

5     "         "     10,  .         .                          11,549  10,172 

10  "    "  20,  .       .     13,760  14,485 

20  «    «  50,  48,773  ....  41,734 

50  "    "  80,  .       .     26,511  ....  20,840 

80  "    "  100,  .            5,152  ....  5,020 

100  and  over,      .  173  190 


Totals,        ....       172,800  150,045 

Although  this  table  is  freely  admitted  not  to  contain  all  the  deaths 
which  took  place  in  the  United  States  for  one  year,  yet  it  is  presumed  to 
give  a  tolerably  accurate  account  of  those  which  come  within  the  range  of 
its  observation.  The  omission  is  a  general  one,  affecting  some  portions  of 
the  country  more,  and  others  less,  as  the  marshals  were  more  or  less  fortu 
nate  in  procuring  answers  to  their  enquiries,  or  zealous  in  prosecuting  them  ; 
but  in  no  instance  have  the  whole  number  of  deaths  which  took  place  in  an 
entire  State  been  included  in  their  reports.  The  relative  division  of  deaths 
into  male  and  female,  and  their  distribution  among  the  respective  ages, 
with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  those  which  took  place  in  the  earlier  years, 
correspond  so  well  with  the  observations  made  by  the  registers  of  the  States 
where  notice  is  taken  of  the  deaths  which  occur  among  the  rural  population 


AT    DIFFERENT    AGES.  1]7 

and  with  those  of  other  countries,  as  to  lead  to  the  belief,  that  they  were 
returned,  with  tolerable  accuracy,  to  the  census  bureau  at  Washington. 

This  table  shows,  in  the  aggregate,  a  preponderance  of  male  over 
female  deaths,  in  each  period  of  life  included,  except  that  from  ten  to 
twenty  years  of  age,  in  which  the  excess  shifts  to  the  female  side  of  the 
table,  to  return  again  to  the  male  side  at  the  next  period  of  life,  which 
unfortunately  embraces  a  stretch  of  thirty  years,  from  twenty  to  fifty,  in 
the  early  part  of  which,  if  a  division  had  been  made,  it  would  have  been 
seen  that  the  female  deaths  were  more  numerous  than  the  male. 

Mr.  Quctelet  has  given  a  table  of  the  proportion  of  male  and  female 
deaths  at  different  ages,  for  the  town  and  country  of  Belgium,  from  which 
it  appears  that  for  every  female  death,  there  occurs  the  following  propor 
tions  of  male  deaths,  at  the  ages  respectively  named  : — 

Age.  City.  County. 

1  to  2  years,  .        .        .        .  1.06  0.97 

14  to  18  " 0.82  0.75 

21  to  2G  "  .        .        .  1.24  1.11 

20  to  30  "  .  .  1.00  0.8G 

30  to  40  "  .         .         .         .  0.88  O.G3 

40  to  50  "  .         .         .         ,         .  1.02  0.83 

50  to  GO  "  .        .  .  1.07  1.18 

GO  to  70  " 0.96  1.05 

70  to  80  "  .  .  0.77  1.00 

^80  to  100, 0.68  0.92 

From  this  it  appears  that  at  about  two  years  the  deaths  in  the  two  sexes 
are  nearly  equal ;  between  the  ages  of  14  and  15,  which  is  the  period  of 
puberty,  the  female  deaths  preponderate.  Between  those  of  21  and  2G 
the  male  deaths  are  in  the  ascendant,  from  30  to  40  the  excess  of  mortality 
shifts  again  to  the  female  side,  and  continues  with  them  during  the  period 
of  procreation. 


QUETEI.LT,  Sur  L'lloiuiut,  vol.  1,  p.  1C7. 


118  MALE  AND  FEMALE  MORTALITY 

L'inilucncc  ties  sexes  est  cxtreincmcnt  prononcec  dans  tout  ce  qui  con- 
cerne  les  elects ;  deja  mume  elle  se  fait  rcssentir  avant  que  1'enfant  ait  pu  voir 
le  jour.  Pendant  les  quatre  annees  dc  1827  a  1830,  on  a  eompte  dans 
Flandrc  occidentale  2597  morts-nos,  dont  1517  dc  sexc  inasculin  et  1080  du 
scxc  feminin  ;  ce  qui  donne  un  rapport  de  3  a.  2  environ.  Ccttc  difference 
est  considerable,  ct  comme  ellc  se  rcproduit  dans  les  tableaux  de  chaque 
annoe,  elle  doit  etrc  attribute  a  unc  cause  speciale. 

Du  rcstc,  cctte  morjalite  n'affecte  pas  seulemcnt  les  enfants  males  avant 
leur  naissancc,  mais  encore  a  peu  pros  pendant  les  dix  ou  douzc  premiers 
mois  qui  la  suivent,  c'est-a-dire  a  peu  pros  pendant  le  temps  de  I'allaitement.* 

During  the  decennial  period  from  1828  to  1837,  the  number  of  deaths 
in  the  Kingdom  of  Sardinia  was  .  .  .  1,203,250 

of  which         .         .         .      603,185  were  males 

and  600,065       "     females, 

being  in  the  neighborhood  of  195  males  to  194  females,  or  in  the  propor 
tion  of  100,   52  of  the  former  to  100  of  the  latter. 

"  II  scsso  maschile  par  dunque  predominate  nolle  morti  come  nolle  na- 
scite,  ma  in  ragion  di  gran  lunga  minorc  ;  ondc  la  popolazionc  maschile 
dcllo  Stato  vienc  crescendo  con  progressione  piu  rapida  chc  la  popolazione 
femminile ;  avremo  anzi  opportunita  di  vedere  in  altro  luogo  chc,  mentrc 
no'  primi  anni  del  decennio  che  consideriamo  la  popolazione  femminile 
ecccdeva  la  popolazione  maschile  negli  Stati  di  S.  M.,  il  contrtirio  avviene 
dal  1832  a  questa  parte;  tuttavia  si  dec  osservare,  che  le  cmigrazioni  assai 
piu  frequenti  negli  uomini  che  nolle  domic,  col  diminuire  il  numero  dcllc 
morti  maschili  avvenute  in  patria  fan  pur  comparire  minore  del  vero  la  ra- 
gionc  do'  maschi  a  quella  delle  femmine  nellc  morti. 

"  Qucsto  fatto  del  predominio  delle  morti  maschili  non  c  no  eguale,  n6 

*  QCETELET,  Sur  L'llo!n)uc,  vol.  1,  p.  lOo. 


IN    DIFFERENT    COUNTRIES.  1  1  9 

costantc  in  tuttc  le  division! ;    csso  ha  luogo  con  divcrsa  proporzione  nolle 
quattro  Division!  chc  scguono,  ncllc  quali  si  trovano  : 

Moit. 

Division!.  Maschi  per  100  Fomminc. 

Torino,         .  .         .  ...         101  12 

Alessandria,  .         .  ...         102  89 

Aosta,                                             ...  101  97 

Nizza, 100  85 

Nolle  altrc  quattro  division!  succede  il  contrario,  e  si  hanno  : 

Morti. 

Divisioni.  Mnsclii  per  100  Fcmmine . 

Savoja, 98  22 

Cunco,  ...  ....  99  95 

Novara, 99  98 

Genova, 99  95. 

"  Queste  differcnzc  cosi  leggier!,  ed  ora  in  un  scnso,  ora  nell'altro,  par 
che  dcbbano  attribuirsi  acagioni  accidental!,  anzicho  aniuna  leggc  costantc 
come  quclla  chc  si  osserva  nolle  nascitc.  Ne  si  pud  dire  chc  la  mortalitii  di 
ciascun  sesso  segua  la  ragionc  dclla  rispettiva  popolazione ;  poiche  so  cosi  e 
infatti  per  le  Divisioni  di  Savoja,  Torino,  Cunco  ed  Alessandria,  il  contra 
rio  succede  in  quelle  di  Novara  c  di  Genova,  nolle  quali  muojono  piu  nu- 
merosamente,  ed  in  qucllc  di  Aosta  e  di  Nizza,  nolle  quali  muorono  piii 
uomini,  abbcnche  in  csse  il  numcro  dellc  donne  sia  il  maggiore.  In  gone- 
rale  la  ragionc  do'  due  scssi  nolle  morti  dipcndc  dalla  ragion  loro  nclla  po 
polazione,  dolla  leggc  di  mortalita  per  eta  che  a  ciascuno  compote,  dal  nu- 
mero  delle  emigrazioni  e  dellc  immigrazieni,  c  dall'ota  cui  queste  sogliono 
aver  luogo. 

"Havvi  tra  le  citta  c  le  carapagnc  una  sensibile  diffcrenza  nclla  ragion 
de'  sessi  ncllo  morti,  ossendo  maggiore  nolle  prime  la  mortalita  dcgli  uomi- 


120  MALE    AND    FEMALE    MORTALITY 

ni,  nolle  ultimo  la  mortalita  delle  donne.  Panno  tuttavia  eccczione  le  citta 
di  Torino  e  di  Geneva,  nelle  quali  le  morti  femminili  di  gran  lunga  supera- 
no  le  rnaschili,  tuttoche  in  entrambe  queste  citta  la  popolazione  maschilc 
(comprendendo  in  essa  la  truppa  di  guarnigione,  e  per  Geneva  la  popola 
zione  del  porto)  grandemente  superi  la  popolazione  femminile ;  infatti  in 
Torino  la  prima  sta  alia  seconda  come  128  al  100.  Ecco  le  tavole  su  cui 
le  precedent!  osservazioni  sono  fondate : 

Morti. 
Maschi  per  100  Femmine. 

Ne'  Communi  Kurali,         .  .  99  74 

Nelle  citta  in  complesso, 104  87 

A  Torino,                 .         .                                             .      94  13 
A  Genova, 95  66.  * 

It  thus  appears,  from  the  observations  deduced  by  M.  Quctelct,  from 
the  eastern  portion  of  Flanders,  that  during  the  four  years  intervening 
between  1827  and  1830,  the  number  of  male  still-born,  as  well  as  those  who 
died  in  early  life,  Avas  largely  in  advance  of  the  female  mortality.  The 
female  mortality,  indeed,  does  not,  according  to  the  facts  deduced  by  this 
distinguished  authority,  begin  to  approach  that  of  the  male  until  the  ago  of 
fourteen,  and  is  not  in  the  ascendant  prior  to  the  ago  of  from  twenty-six  to 
thirty. 

Although  the  observations  made  by  the  Royal  Commission  of  Sardinia, 
just  quoted,  do  not  give  the  relative  proportion  of  male  and  female  deaths 
at  particular  ages,  they  yet  furnish  some  valuable  information  in  relation  to 
the  number  of  deaths  in  different  places,  from  which  it  appears  that  while 
in  some  places,  as  in  Turin  and  Alexandria,  the  female  deaths  were  in  the 
ascendant ;  in  others,  as  Genoa,  and  Savoy,  they  predominated  on  the  side 
of  the  males.  The  proportion  of  male  and  female  deaths,  in  town  and 

*     Inform.  Statis.  dnlla  R.  Comm.  Sup.,  Torino,  1843  ;  Movito.  della  Pope.,  p.  fi64. 


IN    DIFFERENT    COUNTRIES. 


121 


country,  in  Sardinia,  appears  to  be  particularly  marked,  being  in  the  pro 
portion  of  99  males  to  100  females,  in  rural  districts,  while  it  reaches  104 
males  to  100  females,  in  town.  In  this  respect  these  observations  corres 
pond  with  those  made  in  different  parts  of  the  United  States,  as  well  as  the 
more  northern  countries  of  Europe. 

The  annexed  table  of  deaths  demonstrates  that  although  the  excess 
of  mortality,  in  Massachusetts,  is  uniformly  on  the  female  side,  yet  during 
the  early  period  of  life,  it  is  largely  on  that  of  the  male  :— 


Yenrs.  Sex. 

1852,  Males, 

"  Females, 

"  Unknown, 

Totals, 

1853,  Males, 

"  Females, 

Unknown, 
Totals, 

1854,  Males, 
Females, 
Unknown, 

Totals, 

1855,  Males, 
Females, 
Unknown, 

Totals, 

A  ggregate,  Males, 

Females, 
Unknown, 
Totals, 


Total. 

Under  1  . 

Under  5. 

20  to  30. 

All  others. 

8,978 

2,026 

3,719 

803 

4,451 

9,396 

1,641 

3,101 

1,285 

5,010 

10S 

83 

94 

•  •   •  • 

14 

18,482 

3,750 

6,914 

2.093 

9,475 

9,942 

2,248 

4,192 

976 

4,774 

10,210 

1,807 

3,595 

1,307 

5,308 

149 

120 

125 

•  •   •  • 

24 

20,301 

4,175 

7,912 

2,283 

10,106 

10,710 

2,321 

4,337 

1,109 

5,264 

10,558 

1,786 

3,637 

1,493 

5,428 

146 

81 

105 

.... 

41 

21,414 

4,188 

8,079 

2,602 

10,733 

10,285 

2,416 

4,267 

550 

5,462 

10,386 

1,937 

3,694 

705 

5,987 

127 

89 

106 

21 

20,798 

4,442 

8,067 

1,261 

11,470 

39,915 

9,011 

16,515 

3,443 

19,951 

40,550 

7,171 

14,027 

4,790 

21,733 

530 

373 

430 

.... 

100 

80,995 

10,555 

31,072 

8,233 

41,78 

15 


122  MALE  AND  FEMALE  MORTALITY 

The  general  experience  of  Life  Assurance  Companies,  in  Europe  and 
in  this  country,  is  in  exact  correspondence  with  the  results  of  the  above 
table,  and  there  seems  to  be  no  reason  why  the  law  of  mortality  in  this 
regard  should  not  correspond  in  the  United  States  with  that  found  to  obtain 
in  different  European  States.  The  experience  of  the  Gotha  Bank,  in 
Germany,  is  pertinent  to  this  subject  :-— 

"  Another  feature  which  appears  to  characterise  the  class  of  persons 
who  insure  their  lives,  and  results  from  Mr.  Hopf's  analysis  of  the  Gotha 
statistics,  is  the  much  greater  mortality  of  women  at  the  earlier  periods  of 
life ;  in  mixed  populations,  the  reverse  holds  good.  Thus,  in  the  quinquen 
nial  periods,  26  to  30,  31  to  35,  36  to  40,  the  mortality  of  men  is 
respectively  0.77,  0.88,  and  0.98  per  cent.,  while  that  of  women  at  the  same 
periods  of  life  is  1.66,  1.79,  1.92.  After  40,  the  difference  ceases,  and 
at  the  most  advanced  periods  the  females  acquire  an  advantage  over 
males.  The  Gotha  Bank  do  not  insure  pregnant  women,  nor  have  they  ever 
succeeded  in  determining  a  case  of  fraud  on  the  part  of  a  female ;  and 
yet,  as  the  author  observes,  the  numbers  before  us  clearly  prove  that 
'  females  understood  better  than  males  to  gain  advantage  in  the  assurance.' 
The  following  is  his  explanation  of  the  fact  :— 

'  1  think  we  must  sock  the  principal  cause  of  it  in  the  circumstance  that  women, 
from  tlie  greater  bashfulness  peculiar  to  their  sex,  frequently  do  not  communicate 
all  their  bodily  infirmities  and  irregularities  to  their  physicians,  ranch  less  to  others, 
and  feel  themselves  much  less  under  obligation  to  give  notice  to  the  assurance  office 
of  what  they  consider  their  own  secret  respecting  the  condition  of  their  body.' 

And  again  : — 


- 


'  There  is  no  doubt  that  a  greater  proportion  of  females  who  assure  their  lives 
at  the  younger  years,  die  early.  The  deviation  is  too  significant  and  too  constant 
to  be  considered  accidental.  We  are  not  able  to  explain  it  by  any  other  supposition 


IN    DIFFERENT    COUNTRIES.  123 

than  l>y  the  circumstance  that  women  feel  internal  hidden  infirmities  and  defects  in 
a  higher  degree  than  men,  and  have  a  presentiment  of  approaching  danger  in  conse 
quence  of  them,  which  impels  them  to  assure  their  lives,  or  that  they  understand 
better  and  more  skilfully  than  men  to  hide  the  true  state  of  their  health,  and  to 
deceive  hy  it  even  their  medical  men.' 

"  It  is,  however,  to  be  observed  that  the  greater  mortality  of 
females  below  the  age  of  forty  docs  not  apply  in  England,  where  the  mor 
tality  of  the  two  sexes  is  equal  at  that  period  of  life.  Our  own  experience 
would  tend  to  show  that  this  great  mortality  among  females  before  the 
climacteric,  in  Germany,  is  due  rather  to  the  greater  fatality  in  childbirth, 
than  to  the  hidden  defects  adverted  to.  We  throw  this  out  merely  as  an 
impression  obtained  by  inspecting  numerous  returns  of  foreign  agencies, 
than  as  a  fact,  since  nothing  but  the  comparison  of  extended  statistics  can 
serve  to  determine  such  a  question.  We  should  have  no  difficulty  in 
accounting  for  the  circumstance,  if  proved  to  be  based  in  truth,  from  the 
much  more  frequent  employment  of  midwives  during  labor,  in  Germany, 
even  among  the  higher  classes,  than  among  ourselves, 

"  We  pointed  out  at  the  commencement  of  our  remarks  on  the  subject 
of  life  insurance,  that  insurers,  as  a  class,  present  a  much  more  favorable 
average  duration  of  life  than  their  uninsured  compatriots.  This,  however, 
would  not  be  the  case,  were  it  not  for  the  surveillance  exercised  by  the 
police  of  the  insurance  companies — their  medical  officers. 

"  Persons  who  feel  the  taint  of  any  disease  that  may  sap  their  vital 
power,  are  even  more  likely  than  others  to  insure  their  lives,  in  order  to 
secure  a  provision  for  their  wives  and  children.  Were  they  admitted  at  the 
ordinary  rates,  the  favorable  averages  spoken  of  as  peculiar  to  the  insured 
would  soon  be  reduced  below  the  average  of  the  general  population.  It 
can  only  be  by  careful  and  conscientious  appreciation  of  all  the  injurious 
influences  to  which  mankind  are  subjected,  and  by  a  deliberate  weighing  of 


124  COMFAUIfcSON    BETWEEN 

the  circumstantial  as  well  as  the  direct  evidence  bearing  upon  the  health 
of  an  individual,  that  a  medical  examiner  to  an  insurance  company  can 
completely  fulfil  the  duties  of  his  post.  He  has  to  guard  against  nervous 
anxiety  in  watching  over  the  interests  of  his  company,  quite  as  much  as 
against  a  laxity  in  examining  the  applicants  for  the  benefits  of  the  institu 
tion.  The  shock  to  a  person  in  average  health  on  being  declined  on  the 
ground  of  some  imaginary  predisposition,  and  the  injury  inflicted  upon  him 
by  thus  refusing  him  the  benefits  of  assurance,  not  easily  obtained  elsewhere 
when  once  refused,  are  matters  for  the  serious  consideration  of  the  medical 
officer  of  an  insurance  company.* 

The  annexed  table,  prepared  by  Mr.  Kennedy,  late  Superintendent  of 
the  Census  Bureau,  showing  the  per  cent,  of  mortality  in  Massachusetts, 
Maryland,  and  England,  among  male  and  females,  at  each  age,  likewise 
illustrates  this  point : — Before  introducing  it,  however,  it  may  be  proper  to 
state,  that  as  the  officer  upon  whom  the  arrangement  of  the  details  of  the 
census  devolved,  Mr.  Kennedy  bestowed  much  labor  to  perfect  this  new 
but  important  branch  of  statistical  inquiry,  and  had  the  answers  corres 
ponded  with  the  instructions  in  point  of  exactness,  the  information  would 
have  been  everything  that  could  be  desired.  Unfortunately,  however, 
neither  in  the  returns  made  by  the  marshals,  nor  in  their  collation  after 
wards,  was  the  same  care  taken,  as  in  the  preparation  of  the  forms  adopted 
for  their  guidance.  Nor  is  either  he  or  Mr.  De  Bow  to  blame  for  the 
incagcrness  of  the  medical  statistics  which  Congress  felt  so  little  interest  in, 
as  to  order  their  publication  after  a  tardy  delay,  on  the  sole  condition  of  not 
exceeding  400  pages,  instead  of  the  elegant  form  originally  contemplated 
by  the  officers  in  charge  of  the  census  office. 


*  British  ami  Foreign  Medico-Chirurgical  Review,  No.  y5,  p.  112. 


MASSACHUSETTS    AND    MARYLAND. 


125 


ANNUAL  DEATHS  PER  CENT— ISM. 


A.OXS. 

MASSACHUSETTS. 

MARTLAKD. 

ESOLAKD—  1M1. 

Males. 

Females. 

Males. 

Females. 

Males. 

Females. 

0  to       5  

7.105 
1.108 
0.452 
0.572 
0.998 
1.253 
1.513 
2.067 
3.482 
0.767 
15.000 
35.240 

6.052 
0.983 
0.573 
0.831 
1.170 
1.346 
1.325 
1.654 
2.960 
5.762 
13.170 
27  540 

5.466 
1.041 
0.477 
0.605 
0.896 
0.991 
1.884 
2.433 
3.405 
8.P77 
15.157 
31.132 

4.875 
0.855 
0.600 
0.757 
0.938 
1.146 
1.249 
1.712 
3.285 
7.221 
12.280 
23.430 

0.838 
0.955 
0.509 
0.718 
0.949 
1.080 
1.410 
2.230 
4.232 
9.150 
19.850 
37.390 

5.860 
0.922 
0.54-2 
0.801 
0.942 
1.121 
1.308 
1.938 
3.761 
8.378 
18.850 
34.570 

5  to     10  

10  to     15 

15  to    20  

20  to    30  

30  to    40  

40  to    50  

50  to    00  

CO  to    70  

70  to    SD.... 

80  to    90  

90  to  100  

The  mortality  returns  of  many  of  the  States  would  appear  to  indicate 
that  a  difference  exists  between  the  northern  and  southern  States,  in  regard 
to  the  relative  mortality  of  the  sexes  in  the  middle  period  of  life,  from 
thirty  to  forty,  and  that  the  relative  proportion  of  female  deaths  to  those  of 
males,  was  greater  at  this  particular  period  in  warm  than  in  cold  climates. 
The  facts  are  not  sufficiently  numerous  or  well  defined,  to  give  anything 
beyond  a  mere  shadow  to  this  suggestion ;  but  if,  hereafter,  under  a  more 
careful  collection  and  analysis  of  facts  it  assumes  a  visible  and  substantial 
shape,  it  will  furnish  the  starting  point  for  many  curious  speculations  which 
naturally  suggest  themselves  to  the  mind  upon  its  mere  supposition. 

Dr.  Sutton,  in  order  to  exhibit  the  force  of  mortality  upon  the  sexes, 
at  different  ages,  formed  a  table,  showing  the  number  of  persons  of  different 
sexes  living  in  Kentucky,  in  each  period  of  life,  as  designated  by  the  census 
for  1850,  together  witli  the  number  of  deaths,  and  the  proportion  of  deaths 
to  those  of  living  at  the  periods  given,  as  taken  from  the  State  Registration 
Returns  for  1853. 


J1ALE    AND    FEMALE    MORTALITY 


NUMBER  OF  LIVING. 


OK    DEATHS. 


DEATHS    TO    LlVlNG    1    TO 


Aune. 

Males. 

Females. 

i  

Males. 

Females. 

Males. 

Females. 

Undor  1  year,     . 

15,749 

15,014 

1,112 

845 

14.16 

18.00 

1  to  5,     . 

71,938 

65,981 

974 

867 

73.85 

76.10 

5  to  10,       . 

77,138 

74,781 

371 

341 

207.96 

219.30 

10  to  15,  . 

77,713 

65,196 

224 

236 

346.93 

275.88 

15  to  20,       . 

54,881 

55,957 

250 

306 

219.12 

182.86 

20  to  30,  . 

89,336 

82,782 

507 

620 

176.20 

133.52 

30  to  40, 

56,102 

49,648 

240 

389 

234.00 

127.37 

•10  to  50,  . 

35,567 

33,011 

224 

263 

159.22 

125.52 

50  to  CO,       . 

21,197 

19,567 

188 

229 

112.75 

85.44 

60  to  70,  . 

11,058 

11,173 

189 

164 

58.56 

68.13 

70  to  80, 

4,793 

4,689 

165 

148 

29.05 

31.68 

80  and  over, 

1,766 

1,873 

116 

94 

15.22 

19.91 

This  table  is  best  explained  by  the  constructor  of  it,  who  remarks  :— 

"  By  examining  this  table  closely,  it  will  be  observed  that  for  the  first 
six  periods,  the  totals  of  deaths  are  greater  than  the  sums  of  males  and 
females.  This  is  caused  by  there  being  one  or  more  deaths  at  those  ages 
in  which  the  sex  is  not  stated.  In  the  census  are  a  certain  number  of  per 
sons  whose  ages  are  unknown ;  and  the  same  is  true  of  the  persons  who 
have  died ;  but  no  connection  is  presumed  to  exist  between  those  thus  re 
turned  in  the  census  and  in  the  assessor's  book,  for  which  reason  they  are 
both  omitted  in  this  table. 

'  This  table  shows  an  awful  mortality  during  the  first  years  of  life — no 
less  than  one  in  15.64  (or  6  per  cent,  of  all  children  born,)  dying  within 
the  first  year.  If  we  reflect,  too,  that,  of  necessity,  there  must  have  been 
many  deaths  which  were  not  returned  by  the  assessors ;  and  again,  that 
these  infants  were  more  likely  to  be  forgotten  than  older  persons,  we 
shall  be  satisfied  that  this  mortality,  great  as  it  appears,  is  yet  far  short 
of  the  truth.  We  must  observe,  too,  that  in  every  100  dying  during 
the  first  year,  about  57  are  males  and  43  females.  After  the  first  year 


AT    DIFFERENT    AGES.  127 

the  '  value '  or  '  expectation '  of  life  is  much  greater.  Thus,  more  died 
during  the  first  year  than  during  the  next  four.  Doubtless  the  chances  in 
crease  as  the  time  from  birth  increases ;  so  that  during  the  second  period  of 
four  years,  only  one  in  74.70  died;  and  the  male  excess  is  greatly  reduced. 
During  the  third  period,  from  5  to  10,  the  chances  of  life  have  trebled  from 
what  they  were  during  the  second — the  male  excess  rather  increased.  The 
fourth  period,  from  10  to  15,  shows  the  greatest  expectation  of  life — only 
one  dying  in  310.  Here  the  chances  of  life  have  shifted,  and  the  excess 
of  mortality  is  among  the  females.  From  this  time,  the  expectation  of  life 
gradually  declines ;  until  after  the  eightieth  year,  it  is  reduced  to  about 
what  it  was  during  the  first  year.  The  excess  of  mortality,  too,  continues 
with  the  females,  until  the  tenth  period,  from  60  to  70,  when  it  again  re 
turns  to  the  males,  and  there  continues  to  the  end  of  the  list. 

"  Since  constructing  the  foregoing  table,  and  writing  the  comments  on 
it,  I  have  examined  carefully  a  similar  table  prepared  by  the  Registrar- 
General  of  England,  and  find  that  his  table  corroborates  surprisingly  both 
the  general  correctness  of  my  table,  in  early  life,  and  the  remark  made  as 
to  the  number  of  infants  whose  deaths  have  been  omitted.  From  that  table, 
it  appears  that  instead  of  one  child  dying  under  one  year  in  every  1G  born, 
or  6  per  cent,  in  England,  20.51  per  cent,  males,  and  15.44  per  cent,  females 
die  within  the  first  year ;  thus  demonstrating  the  enormous  mortality  of 
that  period ;  and  by  legitimate  inference,  the  great  number  of  deaths 
among  infants  which  are  not  returned  in  our  report. 

"  In  his  table,  as  in  mine,  from  births  to  the  period  "  10  to  15,1  the 
excess  of  mortality  remains  with  the  males.  In  10  to  15,  and  up  to  30  to 
40,'  there  is  a  very  slight  excess  of  male  deaths ;  and  through  all  succeed 
ing  periods,  the  excess  remains  with  the  males,  and  increases  as  age 
advances.  Whether  more  extended  observations  will  show  an  approxima- 


128  MORTALITY    STATISTICS    COMPARED. 

tion  of  the  proportion  of  ages  and  sexes  to  the  English  tables,  we  must 
leave  for  time  to  determine. 

"  I  have  looked  into  the  relative  mortality  of  the  two  races  in  early 
life,  and  find  that  of  the  3,812  which  are  returned  as  having  died  under  5 
years,  2,674  were  whites,  being  one  in  284  of  the  white  population,  and 
1.138  were  colored,  being  one  for  every  195  of  the  colored  population." 

The  remarks  which  preceded  Dr.  Button's  table,  relative  to  the  mor 
tality  of  the  two  sexes,  at  the  middle  period  of  life,  is  not  only  corroborated 
by  it,  but  extended  beyond  to  a  point  which  it  is  thought  will  not  be 
sustained  by  more  general  observations. 

A  comparison  of  the  Swedish  and  Montpellier  mortality  tables  will  show 
that  the  difference  in  the  relative  mortality  of  the  tAvo  sexes  at  this  particu 
lar  epoch  of  life,  which  has  just  been  alluded  to,  as  a  possible  characteristic 
feature  of  northern  and  southern  mortality  in  the  United  States,  also  exists 
in  the  northern  and  southern  counties  of  Europe,  so  far  as  these  tables  are 
an  indication  of  the  value  of  life  among  their  respective  populations. 

The  importance  to  be  attached  to  these  comparisons,  between  male 
and  female  life,  cannot  well  be  over-estimated,  because  it  will  be  found  that 
in  proportion  as  the  expectation  of  life  increases  in  value,  in  like  manner 
will  the  proportion  of  deaths  between  the  sexes  assimilate  more  closely  to 
each  other.  Whatever  cause  tends  to  disturb  these  relations,  as  the  hazards 
of  early  infancy,  or  the  epidemics  which  prove  fatal  to  later  years,  or  the 
change  of  habit  from  a  rural  to  city  life,  operates  directly  in  abridging  the 
span  of  human  existence.  A  population  whose  aggregate  age  at  death  is 
large,  is  uniformly  a  population  in  which  the  relative  number  of  deaths 
among  each  sex,  in  proportion  to  the  living  of  that  sex,  does  not  differ 
materially  ;  on  the  other  hand,  a  population  which  presents  a  low  aggregate 
age  at  death,  is  one  which  exhibits  a  great  disparity  in  the  deaths  of  the 
different  sexes. 


*  2d  Kentucky  Registration  Report,  p.  12C-7. 


INFLUENCE    OF    LOCALITY.  129 


CHAPTER  XI. 

LOCAL      INFLUENCES. 

The  influence  of  locality  in  determining  the  rate  of  mortality,  is  made 
quite  manifest  by  a  comparison  of  the  various  registers  kept  in  different 
places,  and  indeed  is  perceptible  to  most  persons  without  this  comparison. 
The  various  natural  divisions  of  country  into  sea-shore  and  inland  regions, 
extended  plains  and  mountain  elevations,  fruitful  valleys  and  rugged  preci 
pices,  have  each  a  very  manifest  influence  over  the  health  of  those  who  in 
habit  them.  Nor  are  those  geological  formations  which  divide  the  surface 
into  alluvial  and  sandy  regions,  and  scatter  immediately  beneath  the  soil 
which  reposes  upon  them  limestone,  granite,  sandstone,  and  other  rocks, 
giving  a  whole  belt  of  country  to  the  one  formation,  and  another  belt  to 
another,  less  potent  in  the  development  of  the  diseases  peculiar  to  each, 
and  which  constitute  the  chief  outlets  of  life. 

But  apart  from  these  natural  causes  which  arc  incident  to  each  parti 
cular  locality,  and  which  spring  from  the  surface  of  the  earth,  is  that  more 
potent  one  of  climate,  which  often  modifies  those  causes  that  give  character 
to  each  especial  district,  and  assigns  to  each  latitude  its  particular  type  of 
disease. 

Hence  the  inhabitants  of  so  vast  a  country  as  that  of  the  United  States, 
which  embraces  almost  every  variety  of  natural  division  and  geological  for- 


130  INFLUENCE  OF  LOCALITY 

mation,  and,  although  possessed  of  a  temperate  climate,  is  yet  subjected 
upon  its  southern  and  northern  limits,  in  a  modified  degree,  to  the  influences 
of  a  tropical  and  frigid  one,  are,  as  may  well  be  supposed,  subject  to 
a  great  variety  of  influences,  which  operate  in  determining  the  rate  of  mor 
tality,  and  fixing  the  relative  value  of  life. 

It  is  evident  that  these  are  not  always  the  same,  nor  are  they  amenable 
to  the  same  laws ;  and  any  standard  of  comparison  which  would  assign  a 
fixed  rate  of  mortality  to  the  whole  United  States  must  necessarily  be  de 
fective  and  unreliable. 

It  might,  reasonably  be  expected  that  in  each  great  division  of  country 
the  period  of  life  upon  which  death  made  its  heaviest  demand,  after  the 
passage  of  the  infantile  one,  would  be  different ;  and  indeed  in  infancy  and 
the  earliest  years  of  childhood,  the  same  result,  in  a  more  modified  degree, 
might  be  expected.  Among  the  diseases  of  maturer  years,  and  especially 
those  which  fall  with  most  intensity  upon  middle  life,  many  are  confined  to 
certain  well  defined  geographical  limits,  beyond  which  they  rarely  extend, 
so  as  to  form  a  characteristic  feature  in  the  mortality  of  those  localities 
placed  beyond  their  confines. 

Thus  the  intense  autumnal  fever,  with  its  biliary  complications  and  con 
gestive  type  which  prevails  along  the  southern  tier  of  States,  and  gradually 
loses  its  characteristics  and  intensity  as  it  extends  northward,  is  never  seen 
in  the  New  England  States,  or  in  those  which  skirt  the  Canadian  border. 
Nor  is  the  typhoid  fever,  which  prevails  in  the  northern  States,  especially 
in  cool  weather,  a  frequent  visitor  to  the  warm  latitudes  of  Georgia  and 
Alabama. 

Both  of  these  are  so  modified  by  a  change  of  climate,  as  to  develope 
themselves  in  an  altered  form,  in  the  latitudes  which  intervene  between 
these  two  extremes.  Exposure  to  cold,  which  in  a  northern  latitude  would 
develope  itself  in  inflammatory  affections,  intense  in  degree,  but  pure  and 


UPON  THE  RATE  OF  MORTALITY.  131 

simple  in  character,  in  a  southern  one,  give  rise  to  complications  which 
seriously  alter  its  character,  and  affect  its  mode  of  treatment  and  pro 
bable  result.  An  inflammation  of  the  lungs  or  their  invcsture,  which  in 
a  northern  latitude  would  constitute  a  simple  pneumonia  or  pleurisy,  as 
far  south  as  Virginia,  would  become  complicated  with  an  affection  of  liver, 
giving  rise  to  bilious  pneumonia  or  pleurisy,  which  is  a  much  more  serious 
disease,  and  requires  a  different  mode  of  treatment. 

These  examples  are  sufficient  to  show  the  influence  of  climate  and  loca 
lity  in  the  development  of  diseases,  and  in  the  modification  of  the  same 
disease,  and  naturally  lead  to  the  expectation  that  as  the  causes  which 
operate  in  each  are  not  always  the  same,  and  the  circumstances  under 
which  disease  is  manifested  are  diverse,  so  the  results  as  developed  in  the 
demand  upon  life,  would  be  different. 

A  striking  evidence  of  the  effect  of  locality  and  climate,  in  affecting 
the  rate  of  mortality,  is  presented  by  the  returns  of  the  British  army,  whose 
duties,  in  guarding  the  immense  possessions  of  that  government,  have  made 
them  the  inhabitants  of  every  variety  of  climate.  The  annexed  table  of  the 
annual  average  mortality  among  the  troops  of  this  kingdom,  is  given  upon 
the  authority  of  Dr.  Balfour,  at  the  time  Assistant-Surgeon  to  the  Madras 
army  :— 

AVERAGE   ANNUAL   MORTALITY   OF   TROOP9    AT    DIFFERENT    STATIONS,    NATIVES    OF 


KKITISII    ISLANDS. 


c,.   ,.                                                                         .,      •,  Annual  mortality 

Statlon-  Authority.  per  1,000  t 

JVew  South  "Wales,        .         .        .  Marshall,  14.1 

Cape  of  Good  Hope,         .        .  Eeports,  15.5 

Nova  Scotia,         ....              "  18.0 

Malta, 18.7 

Canada, "  20.0 

Gibraltar,           ....                  "  22.1 

Ionian  Islands,       .                  .         .  28.3 


132  STATISTICS   OF   THE  ENGLISH 

Annnal  mortality 
S'at'°»-  Authority.  ,,er  1,000  troopk 

Mauritius,          ....  Eeports,               30.5 

Bermuda,               ....  "                      32.3 

St.  Helena,        .                          .  "                     35.0 
Tenasserium  Proyinces,         .         .                                      50.0 

Madras  Presidency,  .         .         .  Quetelet,               52.0 

Bombay, "                      55.0 

Ceylon,              .                  .         .  Reports,                57.2 

Bengal, Quetelet,              63.0 

"Windward  and  Leeward  Command,  Reports,                85.0 

Jamaica, "  143.0 

Balnnas,             ....  "  200.0 

Sierra  Leone,         ...  "  483.0* 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  these  troops  were  natives  of  the  British 
islands,  and  consequently  exhibited  a  much  higher  rate  of  mortality  than 
the  natives  of  the  respective  countries  in  which  they  were  stationed ; 
yet  with  this  reservation,  the  table  demonstrates  most  emphatically  the 
effect  of  climate  upon  general  mortality.  The  difference  in  the  rate  of  mor 
tality  between  native  and  foreign  troops  is  shown  by  the  annexed  table, 
exhibiting  the  mortality  of  troops  serving  in  their  native  countries.  Thus 


among- 


Mortatity  per  1,000. 

British  regiments  at  home,          ....  15.9 

Maltese  at  Malta,  .  9.0 

Hottentot  corps  in  Africa,  ....  12.5 

Native  Bengal  army,       .....  13.0 

Native  Madras  army, 15.0 

Native  Ceylon  army, 25.8 


Annual  average  of  native  troops  per  1,000,          .         15.2 


*  Journal  London  Statistical  Society,  vol.  8,  p.  195. 


AND    AMERICAN    ARMIES. 


133 


The  annexed  extract  from  the  statistical  report  of  the  sickness  and 
mortality  of  the  United  States  Army,  is  introduced  to  develope  the  same 
proposition  :— 


Regions. 

Mean  strength. 

Number  treated. 

Deaths. 

RATIO  PER  1,000    01  MEAX 
STRENGTH. 

Treated. 

Died. 

3,963 
9,387 
6,901 
8,553 
10,346 
7,230 
6,2'.I9 
2,456 
1,454 
5,580 
5,319 
2,800 
5,919 
10,013 
835 
2,299 
4,450 
6,324 
5,873 
1,707 
1,599 
1,831 

6,935 
31,397 
31,035 
6,426 
22,784 
16,707 
14,262 
6,373 
3,670 
19,587 
20,804 
6,870 
17,426 
35,312 
2,408 
10,262 
15,693 
23051 
11,738 
3,200 
5,420 
4,253 

86 
183 
28 
39 
140 
77 
117 
36 
59 
263 
107 
58 
234 
228 
21 
70 
235 
174 
189 
30 
70 
29 

1,749 
3,315 

4,584 
1,808 
2,2n2 
2,310 
2,264 
2,51)4 
2,524 
3,510 
3.911 
2,453 
2,944 
3,531 
2883 
4,463 
3,526 
3,645 
1,999 
1,874 
3,889 
2,322 

9.0 
19.5 
4.0 
10.9 
13.5 
10.6 
18.5 
14.6 
40.5 
47.0 
20-0 
20.7 
39.5 
22.7 
25.0 
30.4 
52.8 
27.5 
23.6 
17.5 
43.7 
15.8* 

Harbor  of  New  York  

West  Point  

North  Interior,  East,   

The  Great  Lakes  

Middle  Atlantic  

Jefferson  Barracks  and  St.  Louis  Arsenal,  . 
Middle  Interior,  West  

South  Atlantic  

South  Interior   West    

Gulf  Coast  of  Florida,  

Texas,  Southern  Frontier,  

Neither  of  the  results  obtained  by  the  returns  given  above,  are  to  be 
taken  as  a  standard  by  which  to  measure  the  relative  value  of  life  among 
the  resident  populations  of  the  locality  where  the  observations  were  made, 
because  in  addition  to  the  circumstance  that  the  life  of  a  soldier  is  exposed 
to  influences  peculiar  to  itself,  all  of  those  noticed  in  the  British  army,  and 
the  portion  of  those  in  the  United  States  who  were  stationed  at  southern 
posts,  resided  in  climates  to  which  they  were  strangers,  and  in  which  they 
were  subject  to  influences  not  felt  by  the  native  residents. 

It  has  been  seen  that  the  relative  annual  mortality  of  the  different 
countries,  which  possess  a  record  of  the  deaths  that  have  taken  place 


Mortality  Statistics  United  States  Army,  p.  494. 


134  ARMY    STATISTICS    NOT    ALWAYS    APPLICABLE 

among  their  respective  populations,  under  the  influence  of  the  natural 
causes  to  which  allusion  has  been  made,  and  such  artificial  ones  as  they 
have*  chosen  to  surround  themselves  with,  is  quite  different — the  empire  of 
Russia  showing  one  death  to  each  twenty-eight  of  its  inhabitants,  while  in 
England  the  mortality  declines  to  one  in  each  forty-five.  A  subdivision  of 
each  country  shows  that  mortality  is  greater  in  some  rural  districts  than 
others,  and  in  all  presents  a  wide  difference  between  town  and  rural  life. 
Hence  the  law  of  mortality  prevailing  in  Liverpool  and  the  metropolis  is 
not  applicable  to  the  rural  districts  either  of  the  north  or  south  midland 
counties,  nor  is  that  which  defines  the  limits  to  human  existence  at  each 
period  of  life,  the  same  in  France  and  Sweden. 

In  the  United  States,  Avith  the  error  of  the  census  returns  corrected,  so 
as  to  give  an  annual  mortality  of  one  to  each  forty-eight  of  the  inhabitants, 
a  result  is  obtained  which  differs  from  each  of  the  countries  in  Europe,  in 
asmuch  as  it  presents  a  lower  standard  of  mortality.  This  standard  of  mor 
tality,  which  after  all  is  based  somewhat  upon  speculation,  is  not  by  any 
means  reliable,  and  it  will  consequently  be  necessary  to  arrive  at  the  law 
which  governs  it  by  an  examination  of  its  individual  details. 

Parallelisms  in  different  latitudes  are  not  always  to  be  expected  ;  but, 
inasmuch  as  they  have  been  found  to  exist  between  different  parts  of 
the  United  States  and  Europe,  corresponding  in  geographical  position, 
in  other  portions  of  this  enquiry,  it  is  anticipated  they  will  be  found  in  this ; 
and  although  the  results  of  the  observations  in  no  single  country  in  Europe 
may  be  found  to  correspond  with  this,  yet  different  parts  of  the  entire  con 
tinent  may  be  selected,  irrespective  of  the  government  under  which  they 
exist,  which  will  assimilate  to  corresponding  parts  of  the  United  States. 
The  advantage  of  these  comparisons  has  already  become  so  manifest,  that 
nothing  further  need  be  said  in  their  behalf  at  the  present  time. 

There  is  one  circumstance  connected  with  the  climate  of  the  United 


TO    CIVIL    LIFE.  135 

States,  which  would  lead  to  the  belief  that  the  correspondence  between 
different  localities  in  Europe  and  this  country,  apparently  similarly  situated, 
might  not  always  be  sustained,  or  lead  to  analogous  results.  This  is  the 
greater  heat  of  the  American  summer. 

The  prevailing  winds  in  Europe,  as  well  as  America,  especially  during 
the  summer  season,  are  from  the  west.  In  that  portion  of  the  United  States 
embraced  within  the  limits  of  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  as  well  as  in 
that  stretched  along  the  Atlantic  sea  coast,  the  effect  of  these  winds,  whose 
course  is  for  an  immense  distance  over  dry  land,  with  no  intervention  of  sea, 
is  largely  to  elevate  the  temperature.  In  Europe,  the  wind  fresh  from  the 
Atlantic  Ocean  produces  a  directly  contrary  effect,  and  modifies  rather 
than  elevates  the  temperature.  This  effect  is  strikingly  manifested  upon 
vegetation.  There  is  no  part  of  the  United  States  where  the  heat  of  summer 
is  not  sufficiently  intense  to  ripen  maize,  and  it  consequently  flourishes  in 
the  northern  as  well  as  the  Southern  States.  In  Europe,  with  the  exception 
of  the  low  latitudes,  it  is  found  impossible  to  bring  this  plant  to  maturity  for 
the  want  of  a  summer  heat  sufficiently  intense  to  ripen  it.  It  is,  therefore, 
reasonable  to  expect  that  in  elevated  latitudes,  as  well  as  in  southern  ones, 
the  mortality,  in  July  and  August,  when  the  period  of  intense  heat  culmi 
nates,  will  be  proportionably  greater  than  in  countries  similarly  situated  in 
other  respects  in  Europe. 

"  The  isothermal  lines,  first  employed  by  Humboldt  to  measure  the  heat 
and  cold  of  the  earth,  and  to  connect  places  having  the  same  mean  temper 
ature,  differ  sensibly  from  the  lines  of  latitude.  We  need  not  now  cuter 
into  details  how  the  earth's  annual  rotation  and  oblique  motion,  in  relation 
to  the  sun,  the  centre  of  the  system,  fixes  the  tropical  limits  of  the  sun's 
apparent  declination  south  and  north  of  the  equator,  and  produces  alternate 
winter  and  summer  on  either  side  of  the  line,  as  it  will  be  evident  that  .the 
mean  annual  temperature  obtained  at  different  latitudes  must  decrease  from 


13G  ISOTHERMAL    OBSERVATIONS. 

the  equator  to  the  poles.  Had  the  whole  surface  of  the  earth  been  uniform, 
presenting  the  like  relations  to  radiant  heat,  unaffected  by  the  unequal 
action  of  disturbing  causes,  the  mean  temperature  of  every  point  would 
have  been  in  proportion  to  the  radius  of  the  parallel  latitude.  But  the 
mean  temperature  of  places,  calculated  according  to  Dr.  Brewster's  formula, 
from  an  equatorial  mean  of  81°  50'  Fahr.,  differs  considerably  from  the  mean 
obtained  by  observation.  The  mean  temperature  is  usually  higher  at  the 
same  latitude  in  the  Old  World  than  in  the  New,  and  in  north  latitude  than 
in  south.  Thus  the  isothermal  line  of  59°  Fahr.  traverses  the  latitude  of 
46°  in  Europe,  but  descends  to  latitude  3G°  in  America.  The  general  causes 
which  disturb  the  symmetrical  distribution  of  temperature,  are  the  annual 
variations  of  the  upper  equatorial  and  lower  polar  currents  of  the  atmos 
phere,  the  differences  of  its  contained  humidity,  the  unequal  distribution  of 
land  and  water  in  various  countries,  the  peculiarity  of  the  surface  land,  and 
its  relative  height  above  the  level  of  the  sea — all  of  which  causes  have 
more  or  less  influence  in  determining  the  local  temperature  or  climate  of 
countries,  and  in  fixing  the  isothermal  lines  that  mark  out  the  zones  of 
disease."* 


*  British  and  Foreign  Medico-Chirurgical  Review,  No.  XXXVII7.,  p.  248. 


GENERAL   CONFIG  UK  ATION    OF   TERRITORY.  137 


<  I  ii  K  A  K  V 

I'.N  I  VKKSITY   OF 

CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

NATURAL    DIVISIONS    OF    THE    UNITED    STATES. 

It  has  already  been  stated  (page  18)  that  the  territory  of  the  United 
States  is  physically  divided  into  three  distinct  sections,  separated  from  each 
other  by  lofty  ranges  of  mountains,  and  containing  peculiarities  rendering 
an  examination  of  each  a  matter  of  the  highest  consideration.  The  first  of 
these  great  divisions  is  occupied  by  the  Atlantic  plain  and  slope,  which  ex 
tends  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  crest  of  the  Alleghany  mountains,  and  is  the 
oldest  as  well  as  the  most  populous  section  of  the  country.  The  second  is 
embraced  in  the  wide  valley,  bounded  on  the  one  side  by  the  Alleghany,  or 
Appalachain  chain,  and  on  the  other  by  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  is  tra 
versed  by  the  Mississippi  River  and  its  tributaries.  The  third  extends  from 
the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  and,  with  the  exception 
of  California,  contains  but  a  slender  population,  and  is  traversed  by  vast 
wastes  of  unexplored  territory. 

The  Atlantic  plain  and  slope,  stretching  from  the  river  St.  Croix  upon 
the  north,  to  the  coral  reefs  of  Florida  upon  the  south,  presents  south  of 
Cape  Cod  an  unbroken  front,  upwards  of  one  thousand  miles  in  extent,  to 
the  waves  of  the  Atlantic,  unrelieved  by  any  of  those  bold  prominences 

which  destroy  the  tameness  of  landscape.     After  passing  Cape  Cod,  whose 
17 


138  THE    ATLANTIC    PLAIN, 

shores  arc  low  and  sandy,  northward,  the  highlands  near  the  ocean,  and  the 
numerous  harbors  of  Massachusetts,  New  Hampshire  and  Maine,  open  upon 
the  sea  in  the  midst  of  bold  and  picturesque  hills,  which  contrast  agreeably 
with  the  tame  and  monotonous  scene  of  the  more  southerly  coast. 

Receding  from  the  shore,  this  vast  plain,  at  first  level,  becomes  elevated 
into  hills,  which  increase  in  boldness  and  diversity,  until  they  finally  rise 
into  those  lofty  ranges  of  mountain  peaks,  which  bound  the  Atlantic  slope 
on  its  western  side. 

The  breadth  of  this  plain  is  not  in  all  places  the  same.  Beginning  in 
New  England  by  a  narrow  line,  confined  almost  entirely  to  the  sea-coast 
and  the  subjacent  islands,  it  gradually  expands  as  it  proceeds  southward, 
until  in  the  Carolinas  the  mountains  recede  two  hundred  miles  from  the  sea. 

A  well  defined  line  of  primary  rocks,  extending  longitudinally  through 
the  whole  length  of  this  plain,  from  the  New  England  States  to  North  Caro 
lina,  marks  the  point  of  demarcation  between  the  low  and  level  plain 
skirting  the  sea  shore,  and  the  elevated  land  which  finally  loses  itself  iu  the 
lofty  summits  of  the  Alleghanies,  This  line  of  primary  rock,  which  main 
tains  an  average  elevation  of  great  uniformity  of  between  200  and  300  feet 
above  the  sea,  presents  a  visible  barrier  to  the  flow  of  the  tide,  and  is 
marked  in  almost  every  stream  that  crosses  it,  on  its  way  to  the  ocean,  by  a 
series  of  waterfalls  or  turbulent  rapids. 

The  appearance  of  this  chain  of  rocks  clearly  indicates  that  it  once 
formed  the  shore  of  the  ocean,  and  presented  to  the  resistless  beating  of  its 
waves,  a  long  but  not  very  elevated  range  of  cliffs.  The  aspect  of  the 
plain,  stretching  towards  the  sea,  is  also  strongly  corroborative  of  this 
view.  It  is  low,  flat,  sandy,  and  covered  by  an  abundant  scries  of  alluvial 
deposits,  and  is  furrowed  out  to  the  level  of  the  tide  in  every  part  by  a 
multitude  of  inlets  which  are  not  unfrequently  associated  with  large  patches 
of  marsh,  or  salt-meadow  land. 


AND    SLOPE.  130 

The  upper  part  of  the  valley,  divided  by  this  line  of  rocks,  is  nearly  of 
the  same  dimensions  as  that  skirting  upon  the  sea,  and  presents  at  the  onset 
a  range  of  gentle  undulations  which  swell  into  bolder  and  bolder  forms, 
until  it  sweeps  over  the  blue  ridge  and  rises  into  mountain  peaks.  It  is 
principally  composed  of  the  older  sedimentary  and  stratified  primary  rocks, 
and  presents  a  fine  hilly  country,  luxuriant  in  vegetation,  rich  in  scenery, 
and  possessed  of  a  number  of  rivers,  and  a  water-power  of  great  value. 
Professor  II.  D.  Rogers  has  called  the  alluvial  range  east  of  the  line  of 
primary  rocks  the  Atlantic  plain,  and  that  west  of  it  the  Atlantic  slope. 

Most  of  the  principal  towns  on  the  Atlantic  are  built  along  this  line  of 
demarcation,  clearly  showing  the  powerful  influence  exerted  by  geological 
phenomena  upon  the  distribution  of  population.  This  line  of  primary  rock 
may  be  traced  from  the  city  of  New  York,  in  the  falls  of  the  Passaic  at 
Patcrson,  the  Rariton  at  New  Brunswick,  the  Delaware  at  Trenton,  the 
Schuylkill  at  Philadelphia,  the  Patapsco  near  Baltimore,  the  Potomac  at 
Georgetown,  the  Rappahannock  near  Fredericksburg,  the  James  River  at 
Richmond,  the  Brandywine  near  Wilmington,  the  Congree  at  Columbia, 
and  the  Savannah  at  Augusta. 

The  whole  surface  of  the  extensive  territory  limited  by  the  Alleghany 
mountains,  as  well  indeed  as  the  greater  part  of  the  entire  continent  north 
of  the  Isthmus  of  Darein,  is  overlaid  with  a  strata  of  earth  and  pebbles  of 
evident  diluvial  origin,  varying  in  thickness  from  ten  to  twenty  feet,  fre 
quently  leaving  large  surfaces  of  the  rocky  formation  exposed,  and  as  often 
burying  them  in  an  investure  of  thirty  feet  in  depth. 

West  of  this  mountain  chain,  which  not  only  presents  a  variety  and 
beauty  of  landscape  as  grand  and  attractive  as  the  loftiest  peaks  of  the 
Alps  or  the  Pyrennees,  and  is  rich  beyond  calculation  in  its  treasures  of  coal, 
iron  ore,  and  other  minerals,  the  interior  valley  of  the  Mississippi  spreads 
by  a  wide  and  continuous  sweep  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  on  the  west. 


140  THE    INTERIOR    VALLEY 

Those  mountains,  which  are  a  continuation  of  the  Andes  of  South 
America,  and  the  Cordilleras  of  Mexico,  obtain  an  elevation  of  fourteen 
thousand  feet,  rising  into  occasional  peaks  of  upwards  of  sixteen  thousand 
feet. 

This  valley  is  traversed  from  north  to  south  upwards  of  three  thousand 
miles  by  the  Mississippi  river.  This  parent  stream  receives  the  waters 
from  numerous  tributaries  coursing'  through  every  portion  of  the  valley, 
and  forming  highways  upon  which  an  immense  commerce  is  carried.  Cities 
of  considerable  size  have  arisen  upon  the  banks  of  these  rivers  in  various 
parts  of  the  valley  to  accommodate  the  traffic,  and  the  bottom  lands  in  their 
vicinity  have  become  covered  by  a  comparatively  dense  rural  population. 

A  very  remarkable  phenomena  in  the  arrangement  of  this  valley  is  the 
uniformity  of  its  slopes.  One  of  these  reaches  from  the  Alleghany  Mountains 
to  the  Mississippi  river,  a  second  and  larger  extends  from  the  Rocky  Moun 
tains  to  the  same  point,  and  a  third  gradually  rises  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico 
to  the  head  waters  of  the  Mississippi,  with  so  gradual  an  ascent  as  not  to 
attain  an  elevation  of  more  than  1,000  feet  in  the  whole  distance.  The 
slope  west  of  the  Mississippi  is  regular,  while  that  on  the  eastern  side  is 
occasionally  broken  into  hills,  and  embraces  the  most  fertile  territory  in  the 
United  States. 

This  immense  valley  contains  vast  spaces  covered  by  marshes,  and 
small  lagoons,  and  others  of  equal  extent,  especially  near  the  llocky  Moun 
tains,  whose  sandy  and  arid  soil  affords  but  a  stinted  and  scanty  vegetation. 
Beneath  this  variety  of  surface  reposes  the  formations  of  every  geological 
era,  from  the  alluvion  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  to  the  primitive  rocks  of  the 
more  northern  section. 

In  all  these  varied  formations  the  greatest  order  and  simplicity  arc 
observed,  and  it  is  probably  here,  above  all  other  sections  of  the  globe,  that 
the  geologist  can  best  read  in  its  vast  pages  the  history  of  the  earth's 


OF    THE    MISSISSIPPI.  141 

geological  formation.  The  primitive  and  metamorphic  rocks,  it  is  true,  are 
seldom  seen,  and  are  only  exposed  by  upheaval  from  their  natural  positions, 
but  the  lower  silurian,  the  upper  silurian,  the  Devonian  and  the  carboniferous 
strata,  present  themselves  in  unvaried  regularity  over  wide  districts  of 
country. 

The  extensive  ranges  of  silurian  rocks  are,  for  the  most  part,  composed 
of  limestone,  in  every  variety,  from  hard  and  dense,  to  soft  and  friable. 

That  these  geological  characteristics  exercise  a  considerable  influence 
over  health,  is  well  known.  Their  connexion  is  too  immediate  and  self-evident 
to  the  medical  man  to  require  examination  in  detail.  The  prevailing  type 
of  disease  is  dependant  as  much,  and  perhaps  more,  on  the  predominant 
rock  of  the  country,  than  upon  any  other  cause.  Climate,  temperature, 
hygrometic  condition  of  the  atmosphere,  and  prevailing  winds,  may  have 
much  to  do  in  influencing  the  general  peculiarities  of  maladies  in  particular 
localities  ;  but  all  these  agents  combined  are  incompetent  to  generate  the 
cause  which  frequently  dwelfs  in  the  rocky  formation.  Where  the  sub 
stratum  is  composed  of  clay-slate  the  country  is  level,  and  the  soil  is  in  an 
especial  degree  retentive  of  moisture,  and  consequently  ponds  and  marshes 
abound,  and  intermittent  fever  prevails.  A  limestone  formation,  especially 
of  a  friable  species,  is  characterized  by  a  luxuriant  vegetation,  a  picturesque 
landscape,  and  a  high  grade  of  autumnal  fever.  In  the  region  of  sandstones 
the  surface  is  hilly,  and  frequently  mountainous,  arid,  and  less  productive, 
the  streams  are  pure  and  rapid,  and  stagnant  water  is  unknown.  This  is 
the  region  characterized  above  all  others  for  eminent  salubrity. 

It  will  be  seen  that  there  is  no  section  which  does  not  possess  local 
causes  of  salubrity  and  disease,  entirely  independent  of  the  great  geogra 
phical  divisions  into  which  the  country,  as  a  whole,  naturally  resolves  itself. 
When  a  sufficiently  minute  series  of  statistics  arc  obtained,  the  effect  of  these 
local  causes  will  furnish  the  medical  etiologist  with  interesting  subjects  of 


142 


RANGE    OF    TEMPEIiATUHE 


investigation.  The  Transactions  of  the  American  Medical  Association 
contain  some  papers  on  local  epidemics,  which  are  valuable  in  this 
connection. 

In  forming  an  estimate  of  climate  in  temperate  latitudes,  such  concomi 
tant  circumstances  as  proximity  to  the  sea,  or  large  inland  bodies  of  water 
exposure  to  winds  and  elevation,  must  not  be  overlooked.  Thus,  in  high 
latitudes,  the  sea-coast  is  always  warmer  than  the  interior  in  winter,  and 
cooler  in  summer.  The  mountainous  regions  of  New  Hampshire  and  Ver 
mont,  although  but  a  comparatively  trifling  distance  from  the  coast,  are  so 
much  colder  during  the  winter  season,  that  it  is  the  constant  practice  of 
valetudinarians  to  leave  those  elevated  situations  during  this  inclement 
season  to  pass  the  winter  in  Boston,  or  other  portions  of  the  sea  coast. 

The   following   table,    prepared   under   the   direction   of  the   Surgeon- 
General  of  the  United  States  Army,  is  illustrative  of  this  point : — 


PLACES 

OF 

OBSEV'N. 

Latitude. 

Mean  Annual 
Temperature. 

Range  of 
Thermometer. 

WlN'TEB. 

SPRT*, 

SUMMER. 

AUTUMN. 

I 

Dec.    <  Jan. 

Feb. 

March. 

April. 

May. 

June.     July. 

i 

Aug. 

Sept. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

34.9523.31 

31.87 

40.58 

54.  C6 

61.94 

69.2772.98 

75.57 

65.48 

54.45 

37.90 

I 

W.Pt. 

41°  22' 

51.56 

101.  !10 

111 

42.2427.15 

34.73 

42.  3S 

53.15  59.00 

67.  25  73.  10  71.  3'J 

66.75 

58.16 

41.85 

30.04 

52.39 

71.00 

52.61 

Ft.  m 

41°  22' 

53.10 

88      0 

88 

34.71 

51.50 

70.60 

65.59 

West  Point,  New  York,  is  on  the  same  parallel  of  latitude,  and  distant 
one  and  a  half  degree  of  longitude  from  Fort  Trumbull  (New  London,  Ct.) 
The  former  is  inland,  whilst  the  latter  is  upon  the  sea  coast.  Here,  proxi 
mity  to  the  sea,  renders  the  winters  4.G7°  milder,  and  the  summers  1°  cooler, 
than  at  West  Point. 


ON    SEA-COAST   AND   INLAND.  143 

This  difference  is  still  more  manifest  in  that  portion  of  the  North 
American  continent  lying  above  the  boundary  of  the  United  States.  In 
Nova  Scotia,  which  is  nearly  surrounded  by  water,  the  thermometer  seldom 
indicates  a  temperature  greater  than  88°  in  summer,  nor  less  than  8°  below 
zero  in  winter ;  whilst  in  Canada,  occupying  the  same  parallels  of  latitude, 
the  thermometer  in  summer  rises  as  high  as  97°  and  occasionally  100»,  and 
the  oppression  is  as  great  as  in  equatorial  latitudes.  In  winter,  a  cold  of 
30°  below  zero,  is  frequent,  and  the  thermometer  indicates  a  range  during 
this  season  of  from  8°  to  30°  below  zero. 

The  report  of  the  Surgeon-General  contains  the  results  of  a  variety  of 
observations  made  at  different  places  for  the  purpose  of  marking  the  effect 
on  temperature  by  proximity  to,  or  distance  from  the  sea,  from  which 
it  would  appear  that  the  winters  are  8.38°  colder,  and  the  summers 
G.99'  warmer,  in  the  inland  than  on  the  sea  coast. 

It  may  be  proper  to  remark  that  many  of  the  inland  military  posts,  are 
situated  in  the  new  country  beyond  the  western  border  settlements,  and  are 
exposed  to  the  bleak  winds  from  the  Rocky  Mountains,  which  course  with 
out  opposition  across  the  open  belts  of  prairie,  forming  so  prominent  a 
picture  in  this  western  landscape.  Those  who  reside  in  these  prairies 
believe,  and  perhaps  justly,  that  the  sun's  rays  obtain  a  greater  intensity  in 
their  open  and  almost  boundless  fields,  than  where  the  scene  is  diversified 
by  the  green  foliage  and  agreeable  shelter  of  the  thick  forest.  It  is  highly 
probable,  therefore,  that  a  comparison  between  localities  less  exposed,  and 
in  more  cultivated  regions,  would  not  exhibit  the  same  difference  of  tem 
perature  between  the  sea-coast  and  interior,  as  appears  from  the  observations 
of  the  medical  officers  of  the  army. 

The  small  numerous  islands  which  dot  the  surface  of  the  ocean  on  the 
shores  of  South  Carolina  and  Florida,  are  famed  for  their  salubrity  and  uni 
formity  of  temperature ;  while  the  interior  in  summer  is  parched  beneath 


144  CLIMATE    OF    THE    GREAT    LAKES. 

the  intensity  of  a  burning  sun.  The  temperature  here  seldom  attains  a 
higher  elevation  than  80°  or  83°,  which,  combined  with  the  pleasant  sea- 
breeze,  almost  continually  playing  over  their  surface,  renders  them  delightful 
and  healthy  places  of  resort  for  the  inhabitants  of  the  main  land. 

The  immense  chain  of  inland  lakes  on  the  northern  frontier,  comprising 
a  larger  collection  of  fresh  water  than  is  to  be  found  elsewhere  on  the  sur 
face  of  the  globe,  exercises,  as  may  be  supposed,  a  decided  influence  on  the 
temperature  of  the  country  in  juxta-position  with  them.  It  is  estimated 
that  these  lakes  contain  11,300  cubic  miles  of  water,  about  half  the  quantity 
of  fresh  water  on  the  globe,  and  reach  for  a  distance  of  1900  miles,  covering 
over  94,000  square  miles  with  water.  Their  depth  is  proportionably  great — 
in  some  places,  as  in  Lake  Michigan,  the  sounding  line  having  gone  to  the 
depth  of  1800  feet  without  reaching  bottom. 

The  effect  on  climate  produced  by  proximity  to  ranges  of  mountains 
in  the  United  States  is  very  marked.  The  salubrity  of  those  portions  of  Vir 
ginia,  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania,  lying  at  the  foot  of  the  Alleghanics,  is 
doubtless  in  a  great  measure  induced  by  the  immediate  presence  of  this  ex 
tended  chain  of  lofty  mountains.  The  superior  healthiness  of  this  section 
of  country  is  so  famed,  that  large  numbers  of  visitors  from  the  lowlands 
and  large  cities,  are  in  the  yearly  custom  of  resorting  thither  during  the 
summer  and  autumn  months,  when  the  heat  of  town  is  most  oppressive,  and 
the  malarial  country  most  prolific  of  disease. 

It  not  unfrequently  happens,  however,  that  the  protection  afforded  by 
mountains  against  the  strong  winds,  operates  unfavorably  on  the  mainte 
nance  of  a  wholesome  atmosphere,  and  hence  we  often  find,  deep  valleys  in 
the  midst  of  high  and  precipitous  mountains  without  a  proper  outlet,  op 
pressed  by  a  degree  of  heat  Avhich  is  almost  insupportabable.  In  those 
mountain  gorges,  on  which  the  wind  falls  obliquely,  and  without  sufficient 
force  to  sweep  away  the  vapours  arising  from  the  surface,  which  constantly 


AND    MOUNTAIN    REGIONS.  145 

arise,  laden  with  exhalations  from  the  soil,  an  unwholesome  moisture  is  ever 
present,  the  air  stagnates  and  looses  its  vital  properties ;  even  the  water  is 
supposed  to  loose  its  healthy  qualities,  and  the  situation  becomes  in  the 
highest  degree  prejudicial  to  health.  Positions  of  this  kind  are  seldom  in 
habited  in  the  United  States,  owing  to  the  extent  of  its  territory,  and  the 
facility  with  which  even  the  poorest  persons  can  change  their  abode.  In 
Switzerland  and  Scotland  the  melancholy  effects  of  such  a  locality  arc  ren 
dered  too  visible  in  the  miserable  race  of  beings  inhabiting  them,  who  are 
the  constant  and  incurable  victims  of  scrofulous  and  rachitic  affections,  and 
who  drag  out  a  bare  animal  existence  of  mental  imbecility  and  bodily  suf 
fering,  oppressed  by  evils  which  they  have  neither  the  ability  nor  the  inclin 
ation  to  cast  off. 

Elevation  above  the  level  of  the  sea  exercises  a  decided  influence  over 
the  climate  of  any  particular  latitude.  The  temperature  of  the  atmosphere 
is  found  to  decrease  in  successive  and  regular  gradation  as  it  leaves  the 
earth's  surface,  so  that  in  the  ascent  of  the  lofty  mountains,  within  the 
tropics,  the  traveller  experiences  every  change  of  weather,  from  the  oppres 
sive  heat  of  the  summer's  sun  on  the  plain  below,  to  the  piercing  cold  of 
eternal  frost,  on  the  lofty  summit  above.  The  variation  of  temperature  has 
been  found,  with  occasional  variations,  to  equal  one  degree  for  every  three 
hundred  feet  in  temperate  climates.  This  subsidence  of  temperature  with 
elevation  is  doubtless  dependent  on  the  extreme  rarity  of  the  atmosphere  at 
a  distance  from  the  earth,  and  the  consequent  facility  with  which  it  is  per 
meated  by  heat,  as  well  as  the  radiating  powers  possessed  by  the  earth,  which 
enables  it  to  return  the  atmosphere  a  portion  of  the  solar  rays  previously 
absorbed. 

The  atmosphere  is  condensed  in  proportion  to  the  force  by  which  it  is 
compressed,  and  expands  in  exact  ratio  to  the  diminution  of  that  force.  It 

follows    that   the   superincumbent   strata   of  air,    being   compressed    with 
18 


140  EFFECT    OF    ELEVATION. 

greatest  force  in  its  most  dependent  part,  and  that  dependent  part  being 
nearest  the  earth's  surface,  its  density  will  there  be  greatest,  and  this  density 
will  diminish  in  exact  proportion  to  the  ascent  of  the  column  of  air.  Now, 
the  air,  when  under  a  certain  compression,  has  a  certain  capacity  for  latent 
heat,  which  is  increased  by  a  diminution  of  the  compression,  and  diminished 
by  its  increase.  If  a  column  of  air,  at  a  certain  distance  from  the  earth, 
receive  a  certain  number  of  sun's  rays,  and  then  be  suddenly  brought  down 
to  a  position  where  it  will  occupy  a  denser  medium,  its  particles  being  com 
pressed,  a  portion  of  the  latent  heat  becomes  sensible,  and  is  given  off  to 
surrounding  bodies. 

The  following  observations,  made  by  Mr.  Green,  in  an  asrial  voyage,  ex 
hibits  this  declension  of  temperature  : — 

"  The  thermometer  at  the  earth's  surface  indicated  a  temperature  of  74° 
At  an  elevation  of  2,952  feet,  of  .72 

7,288       "  70 

9,993       "  .  69 

11,059  45 

11,293  .  .  38  " 

making  a  difference  of  36  degrees  between  the  earth's  surface  and  the 
highest  elevation  attained,  or  about  one  degree  for  every  311  feet  of  alti 
tude.  However,  much  more  confidence  is  to  be  placed  in  the  statements  of 
Humboidt  and  Sir  John  Leslie,  who  believe  the  difference  to  be  more  marked 
nearer  the  surface  of  the  earth. 

The  human  body  is  supposed  to  be  affected  by  the  rarefaction  of  the 
air  at  great  heights,  as  well  as  by  a  diminution  of  the  temperature.  On 
this  point,  however,  there  exists  a  diversity  of  opinion,  some  maintaining 
that  all  the  unpleasant  effects  experienced  in  these  ascents  are  to  be  attri 
buted  to  the  fatigue  consequent  on  so  difficult  a  journey;  whilst  others 
affirm  that  these  effects  are  due  alone  to  the  character  of  the  atmos- 


SOURCES   OF    MOISTFRE.  147 

phcrc.  Under  ordinary  circumstances  the  equality  df  pressure  from  the  air 
is  so  equally  balanced  without  and  within,  that  although  a  pressure  is  main 
tained  equal  to  about  32,000  pounds,  it  is  not  felt.  If  any  considerable 
portion  of  this  pressure  be  removed,  the  bloodvessels,  especially  of  the 
mucous  surfaces,  arc  more  easily  ruptured,  and  hence  hemorrhages  from  the 
lungs  and  other  parts  of  the  body  are  more  apt  to  occur.  Strangers  visiting 
Potosi,  in  South  America,  which  is  the  most  elevated  town  of  any  size  in 
the  world,  being  upwards  of  13,000  feet  above  the  level  of  the  ocean,  do  not 
recover  from  the  unpleasant  effects  produced  by  a  rarefaction  of  the  air  at 
this  height  under  a  year,  and  pulmonary  complaints  are  much  more  frequent 
among  them  than  the  inhabitants  of  the  low  country. 

Taken  as  a  whole,  all  the  gentle  slopes  on  this  continent  descend  east- 
wardly  towards  the  Atlantic,  and  the  abriTpt  ones  rise  on  its  western  aspect. 
In  this  respect  a  manifest  difference  is  observed  between  this  continent  and 
Europe,  which  gradually  declines  westwardly  towards  the  Atlantic. 

This  general  configuration  necessarily  gives  rise  to  a  moister  and  more 
temperate  climate  in  Europe  than  in  America,  in  the  same  parallels  of 
latitude.  This  effect  would  be  much  more  obvious  were  it  not  for  an  admir 
able  compensation  made  by  the  presence  of  the  gulf  stream  and  the  trade 
wind  that  accompanies  it.  From  this  source,  not  only  the  Atlantic  coast, 
but  the  Mississippi  valley,  which  is  exposed  at  its  southern  extremity  to  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  derives  a  larger  proportion  of  its  moisture,  and  is  equalized 
with  that  of  Europe.  The  trade  wind,  fresh  from  the  gulf  stream,  spreads 
itself  along  the  whole  Atlantic  region  and  upon  the  slopes  of  the  Alleghanies 
loaded  with  vapor  obtained  from  the  ocean,  and  not  only  supplies  this  part 
of  the  continent  with  a  copious  supply  of  water,  but  even  distributes  its 
favors,  in  a  less  degree  however,  to  the  Mississippi  region,  through  its  great 
inlet  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Were  this  great  interior  valley  exposed  to  the 
southwest  winds  from  the  Pacific,  instead  of  being  slml  out  from  them  by 


148  EFFECT    OF    MOISTURE 

the  Rocky  Mountains,  its  climate  would  doubtless  be  softer  and  more 
equable,  and  its  influence  over  health  and  disease  largely  modified. 

There  is,  perhaps,  no  concomitant  of  the  atmosphere  more  immediately 
concerned  in  the  maintenance  of  the  functions  of  the  body,  more  influential 
in  the  preservation  of  health,  and  more  active  in  the  production  of  disease, 
than  moisture.  Man  constantly  exists  not  only  in  an  atmosphere  of  air, 
but  likewise  in  one  of  aqueous  vapor,  which  insinuates  itself  between  the 
particles  of  common  air,  and  pervades  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  the  entire 
ethcrial  ocean,  seriously  modifying  it,  and  influencing  its  action  on  the 
animate  creation. 

The  human  body  is  composed,  in  a  great  proportion,  of  fluid  particles, 
which  arc  incessantly  in  a  state  of  motion — sometimes  slow,  and  at  other 
times  rapid — that  find  a  ready  egress  by  means  of  the  exhalent  vessels,  both 
from  the  external  and  internal  open  surfaces.  In  a  dry  state  of  the  atmos 
phere,  especially  when  combined  with  an  elevated  temperature,  the  exha- 
lents  are  exceedingly  active,  and  give  off  a  greater  amount  of  fluids  than  are 
required  to  be  parted  with  for  the  due  performance  of  the  functions  of  the 
body.  For  this  reason  the  desire  for  liquid  aliment  is  manifestly  increased 
in  summer.  Every  one  must  have  observed  the  difference  in  the  amount  of 
liquid  taken  in  a  dry  or  a  damp  day,  at  the  same  season  of  the  year ; 
indeed,  this  appetite,  when  not  unnaturally  created,  and  when  the  body  is 
in  a  state  of  perfect  health,  is  almost  entirely  dependent  on  the  hyrometic 
condition  of  the  atmosphere  for  the  variation  in  its  demands. 

In  Arabia  and  the  interior  of  Africa,  where  the  air  contains  compara 
tively  little  moisture,  the  inhabitants  exhibit  a  dry  and  rigid  muscular  fibre, 
and  possess  an  exceedingly  small  supply  of  fluids.  In  the  British  Islands, 
and  the  coast  of  New  England,  in  our  own  country,  where  the  quantity  of 
moisture  contained  in  the  atmosphere  is  unusually  great,  the  inhabitants 
exhibit  a  greater  proportion  of  fluids  in  their  organization  than  any  other 


UPON  THE  HUMAN  BODY.  140 

people  on  the  surface  of  the  globe.  In  Mexico,  the  table  lands  are  cele 
brated  for  the  dryness  of  their  atmosphere.  The  rapacity  with  which  it 
seizes  on  fluid  particles  is  said  to  be  so  great,  that  the  flesh  of  animals 
seldom  becomes  putrid,  even  during  the  heat  of  summer.  The  fluid  por 
tions  combining  with  the  atmosphere,  the  solid  are  preserved  by  means  of 
this  process  of  natural  drying.  The  Indians  upon  the  southwestern  frontier 
resort  to  this  method  of  securing  their  food  by  jerking  the  flesh  of  the 
buffalo. 

The  influence  of  moisture,  as  experienced  by  its  presence  or  absence  in 
winds,  is  very  well  known.  Those  winds  which  pass  over  a  large  extent  of 
water  are  moist,  light  and  warm,  and  exert  a  beneficial  influence  over  the 
system,  whilst  those  which  find  their  way  over  a  considerable  tract  of  land 
are  drier  and  heavier.  In  warm  countries,  the  winds  from  land,  freighted 
with  the  additional  heat  derived  from  the  burning  soil,  and  deprived  of 
the  greater  proportion  of  their  moisture,  are  dry,  hot,  suffocating,  and  are 
frequently  productive  of  the  most  dreadful  effects  to  those  travellers, 
who,  on  the  deserts  of  Africa,  or  the  plains  of  India,  are  exposed  to  their 
action. 

This  aqueous  vapor,  so  necessary  for  the  due  performance  of  the  animal 
functions,  has  its  force  determined,  and  its  quantity  established  in  the 
atmosphere,  by  locality,  temperature,  pressure,  and  motion  of  the  air.  In  its 
aerial  form,  vapor,  like  all  the  other  constituents  of  the  mixed  atmosphere 
in  which  we  live,  is  colorless  and  transparent ;  but  in  the  act  of  condensing, 
it  imparts  to  the  atmosphere  a  certain  degree  of  opacity,  proportioned  to 
the  conglomeration  of  the  watery  particles.  The  visible  vapor,  arising  from 
the  condensation  of  the  transparent  portions  of  the  watery  atmosphere, 
becomes  manifest  to  our  senses,  in  the  form  of  clouds,  mist  and  fog ;  and 
when  the  collection  is  too  large  to  be  sustained  by  the  buoyancy  of  tin;  air, 
it  descends  upon  the  earth,  in  rain,  hail,  or  snow. 


150  EFFECT    OF    MOISTURE. 

The  vapor  in  the  atmosphere  is  derived  from  the  evaporation  of  water 
at  the  earth's  surface.  This  process  takes  place  with  greater  rapidity  at  a 
high  than  at  a  low  temperature,  in  a  dry  than  in  a  moist  atmosphere,  in  an 
agitated  rather  than  in  a  quiet  air,  and  hence  a  warm  climate  and  dry  winds 
are  highly  favorable  to  its  production. 

These  general  observations  will  enable  the  reader  to  understand  why 
certain  localities  in  the  same  latitude  arc  different  from  others.  With  these 
characteristics  of  territory  before  him,  he  will  readily  comprehend  why 
the  same  degree  of  latitude  presents  a  great  variety  of  forms  of  disease, 
some  of  which  are  referable  to  one  condition  of  climate  and  others  to 
another,  and  will  be  prepared  to  explain  many  apparently  contradictory 
phenomena  which  present  themselves  in  the  investigation  of  the  causes 
of  mortality  in  so  extensive  and  diversified  a  country  as  that  embraced 
within  the  limits  of  the  United  States. 


INFLUENCE  OF  SEASONS.  151 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


INFLUENCE   OF    SEASONS. 


Th  c  following  table  exhibits  the  number  of  deaths  which  occurred  in 
each  of  the  four  seasons  of  the  year,  in  each  State  of  the  Union  : — 


STATES. 

Spring. 

Summer. 

Autumn. 

Winter. 

Alabama, 

2,084 

2,229 

2,852 

1,686 

Arkansas, 

756 

718 

933 

5*48 

California, 

54 

92 

417 

322 

Columbia,  District  of, 

236 

253 

189 

146 

Connecticut, 

1,399 

1,162 

2,127 

1,026 

Delaware, 

273 

380 

345 

209 

Florida, 

226 

252 

247 

174 

Georgia, 

2,559 

2,535 

2,692 

2,051 

Illinois, 

2,492 

3,333 

3,649 

1,742 

Indiana, 

2,765 

3,540 

4,160 

2,039 

Iowa, 

523 

526 

605 

356 

Kentucky, 

3,436 

4,942 

4,060 

2,424 

Louisiana, 

2,784 

3,505 

3,053 

2,514 

Maine, 

1,882 

1,774 

2,569 

1,334 

Maryland, 

1,385 

2,730 

2,561 

1,777 

Massachusetts,    . 

3,945 

3,964 

7,645 

3,583 

Michigan, 

1,117 

1,047 

1,325 

832 

Mississippi, 

2,089 

2,371 

2,645 

1,460 

152  DEATHS  IN  EACH  SEASON. 


STATES 

Spring. 

Summer. 

Autumn. 

Winter. 

Missouri, 

2,160 

5,422 

2,842 

1,507 

New  Hampshire, 

1,013 

990 

1,459 

751 

New  Jersey, 

1,463 

1,750 

2,175 

1,037 

New  York, 

10,101 

12,444 

14,843 

7,602 

North  Carolina, 

2,707 

2,678 

2,425 

2,697 

Ohio, 

6,122 

9,520 

9,010 

4,159 

Pennsylvania, 

7,649 

7,517 

8,129 

4,042 

Rhode  Island, 

473 

520 

817 

520 

South  Carolina, 

1,997 

2,058 

2,259 

1,465 

Tennessee, 

2,924 

3,818 

3,039 

2,244 

Texas,    .... 

585 

706 

804 

691 

Vermont,    . 

890 

672 

941 

590 

Virginia, 

5,144 

5,489 

4,576 

3,608 

Wisconsin, 

768 

630 

963 

509 

Minnesota,    . 

6 

10 

7 

New  Mexico,    . 

288 

235 

214 

292 

Oregon, 

13 

5 

9 

14 

Utah, 

56 

97 

30 

52 

From  these  returns  it  will  be  seen  that  the  summer  and  autumn 
months  proved  more  fatal  than  those  of  winter  and  spring.  In  most  of  the 
Northern  States,  as  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts,  Connecticut  and 
New  York,  the  most  fatal  season  was  autumn  ;  while  in  many  of  the  Southern 
States,  as  Virginia,  Kentucky,  North  Carolina  and  Louisiana,  the  period  of 
greatest  mortality  was  summer.  This  does  not  appear  to  be  invariably  the 
case,  as  in  Alabama,  Georgia,  Mississippi  and  South  Carolina,  the  number 
of  deaths  in  summer  and  autumn  nearly  correspond,  but  slightly  prepon 
derate  on  the  side  of  autumn. 

The  influence  of  Asiatic  cholera,  which  prevailed  as  an  epidemic 
during  the  summer  of  1849,  may  have  had  some  effect  in  changing  the 
relation  of  the  deaths  to  the  four  seasons  in  which  they  are  classed,  as  it 
certainly  had  in  the  case  of  Missouri,  where  5422  deaths  are  recorded  in 


IN     IMFFKUENT    STATES.  153 

the  summer  quarter,  and  but  2842  in  the  autumn ;  but  it  is  presumed 
generally  to  have  had  but  slight  effect,  as  the  persons  \vlio  were  victims 
were  usually  of  the  humblest  class  in  towns,  and  had  but  few  friends  to 
report  their  deaths  to  the  authorities,  by  whom  these  returns  were  made ; 
besides,  the  whole  number  of  deaths  reported  as  having  died  of  cholera,  in 
the  United  States,  is  .'51,506,  while  it  is  known  that  5,071  died  from  this 
disease,  in  the  city  of  New  York  alone,  and  as  many  more  in  St.  Louis  The 
great  mortality  which  pervaded  the  whole  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  from 
this  disease,  is,  of  course,  not  to  be  found  in  these  returns.* 

With  scarcely  an  exception,  the  season  of  winter  is  to  be  found  least 

• 

prolific  of  disease.  This  diminished  mortality  does  not  appear  to  be  confined 
to  any  particular  section  of  country,  but  embraces  with  equal  force  the 
States  located  in  the  colder  latitudes  of  the  north,  and  the  milder  ones  of 
the  south,  and  contrasts  in  the  most  striking  manner  with  the  results  of  the 
registration  returns  of  England. 

From  an  examination  of  these,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  heaviest  demand 
upon,  life,  in  England,  is  in  the  winter  season,  when,  according  to  the  census 
returns,  it  is  least  severely  taxed  here,  and  that  the  periods  of  freest  exemp 
tions  from  disease  there  are  those  upon  which  it  falls  with  greatest  severity 
here.  Now,  while  this  table  exhibits  in  the  most  positive  manner  the  in 
fluence  of  the  seasons  upon  disease,  it  at  the  same  time  shows  clearly  how 
very  materially  the  law  of  mortality  in  England  and  the  United  States  is  at 
variance,  and  demonstrates  the  necessity  of  great  caution  in  the  use  of  the 
former  when  applied  to  an  elucidation  of  the  value  of  life  in  the  United 
States. 

This  great  winter  mortality  in  England    "  exhibits,"  remarks  the  Re- 


*  Report  on  Asiatic  Cholera  in  the  United  States,  in  1849,   by  James  Wynne,   II.  D.     Appendix  C  to  the 
iort  of  the  General  Board  of  Health,  London. 
1'.) 


154  DWELLINGS    IX    DIFFERENT    SECTIONS 

gistrar-General.  "in  a  striking  light  the  fatal  effects  of  cold."  The  degree 
of  cold  in  the  northern  part  of  the  United  States  is  not  only  equal  to  that 
of  England  during  the  winter  months,  but  far  more  intense,  and  if  the  mor 
tality  was  due  to  cold  alone,  it  should  be  far  outstripped  by  that  of  this 
country,  while  in  fact,  with  a  lower  depression  of  the  thermometer  than  in 
England,  this  particular  season  is  more  healthy  here  than  there.  But  the 
Registrar-General  alludes  to  another  cause  which  may  operate  with 
greater  force  in  England  than  in  this  countiy,  and  certainly  does  so  in  the 
rural  districts.  This  is  "the  crowding  and  privations  to  which  a  consider 
able  part  of  the  population  is  necessarily  more  exposed  in  cold  than  in  warm 

• 

weather." 

A  manifest  difference  in  the  habits  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  two  coun 
tries  is  their  relative  division  into  town  and  country  populations.  Eight 
hundred  and  fifteen  towns  in  Great  Britain,  in  1851,  contained  an  aggregate 
population  of  10,556,228  persons,  nearly  equal  to  one-half  of  the  whole 
population,  from  which  it  would  appear  that  the  whole  was  nearly  equally 
divided  between  those  who  resided  in  towns  and  those  Avho  dwrelt  in  the 
country,  giving  a  slight  preponderance  to  the  latter. 

The  aggregate  town  population  of  the  United  States  in  1850,  who 
dwelt  in  towns  of  not  under  4,000  inhabitants,  was  about  3,000,000.  Mr. 
DC  Bow  estimates  "  that  the  village,  town  and  city  population  includes 
about  one-fourth  of  the  whole,"  leaving  as  residents  of  rural  districts  three- 
fourths  of  the  population,  instead  of  one-half,  as  in  England  and  Wales. 

The  statistics  of  neither  country  show  any  excessive  crowding  of  the 
population  into  a  small  number  of  tenements,  and  will  doubtless  surprise 
those  who  have  derived  their  information  upon  this  point  from  a  knowledge 
of  some  wretched  and  confined  portion  of  a  populous  city  in  cither  country, 
where«  notwithstanding  the  census  returns,  overcrowding  does  exist  to  a 
very  alarming  degree. 


OF    THE    VNIOX.  1.55 

The  number  of  dwellings  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  according  to 
the  census  of  1851,  was  4,717,172.  The  number  in  the  United  States, 
in  1850,  was  3,302,337. 

The  relative  distribution  of  the  population  among  those  of  the  United 
States  has  been  given  in  the  census  returns,  from  which  it  would  appear 
that  upon  an  average  there  was  a  house  for  every  six  persons,  and  ninety- 
three  houses  for  each  hundred  families,  which  arc  thus  distributed  :— 

,.    .  _.  .  .  Dwellings  of  white  aad          Families  of  white  ami      Ratio  of  families  to  100 

Geographical  DiTisioiw.  fref  colored.  free  coloi-c.l.  inhabitants. 

New  England,       .     .     .  448,789  518,532  19.01 

Middle  States,    .     .     .  1,046,131  1,175,612  18.01 

Southern  States,   .     .     .  423,681  426,691  17.88 

Southwestern  States,  .  359,511  366,802  17.65 

Northwestern  States,     .  1,041,332  1,066,777  17.54 

California  &  Territories,  42,893  43,781  23.68 


Total,     .     .     .     3,362,337'  3,598,195  18.00 

"  Upon  the  average  for  the  Union,  there  are  16.82  houses  for  every  100 
white  and  free  colored  persons,  or  a  little  less  than  one  house  to  every  six 
persons,  the  ratio  between  the  States  varying  from  15.17  dwellings  to  every 

O  ^ 

10$  persons  in  Rhode  Island  to  25.0  in  California,  The  proportion  of  fami 
lies  to  dwellings  in  the  Union  is  as  107.01  to  100.  In  Utah  and  Oregon 
there  is  one  dwelling  to  every  family;  in  Louisiana  100  to  every  110 ;  in 
Connecticut  100  to  114 ;  in  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island  100  to  126, 
&c.,  &c." — Compend.  Census. 

In  conjunction  with  this  is  placed  a  tabulated  statement,  embracing 
similar  information  concerning  the  several  principal  European  States :— 


DWELLINGS    IX    EUROPE. 


COUNTRIES. 


NUMBER  OF  PERSON'S  TO 
KACII  DWELLING. 


NUMBER,  OF  PERSONS  TO 
EACH  FAMILY. 


NUMBER  OF  FAMILIES  TO 
EACH  DWELLING. 


1801. 

1851. 

1801. 

1851. 

1801. 

1851. 

Scotland,      .     .     . 

5.40 

7.80 

4.42 

4.81 

1.236 

1.620 

England  &  Wales, 

5.64 

5.47 

4.69 

4.83 

1.204 

1.132 

Great  Britain,  .     . 

5.61 

5.71 

4.64 

4.83 

1.209 

1.182 

France,    .     . 

.... 

4.85 

.... 

3.97 

.... 

1.222 

Austria, 

0.89 

4.44 

1.551 

Prussia. 

8.13 

5.13 

1.585 

"  The  average  number  of  persons  to  each  dwelling  in  Ireland,  in  1851, 
was  G.35  ;  and  in  Belgium  in  184G,  5.42. 

The  number  of  dwellings  in  Ireland  in  1851  is  stated  at  1,047,735, 
making  the  total  for  the  British  empire,  including  the  islands,  4,717,172. 
Adding  the  dwellings  of  the  slave  population,  at  least,  on  the  average,  as 
good  as  those  of  the  operative  classes  of  Europe,  and  estimating  one  dwel 
ling  for  six  slaves,  the  total  dwellings  in  the  United  States  will  be  4,197,914. 
By  comparison,  one  dwelling  to  every  5.82  persons  in  Great  Britain,  and 
one  to  every  5.52  persons  in  the  United  States." — IT.  K.  Census. 

It  would  seem  from  these  statements,  which  must  be  considered  as 
authentic,  that  ample  provision  has  been  made  in  each  country  included  in 
these  tables  to  provide  a  requisite  supply  of  house  room  for  its  inhabitants  ; 
and  it  might  reasonably  be  anticipated,  that  with  a  sufficient  number  of 
houses  to  accommodate  six  of  the  entire  population  in  each,  that  excessive 
overcrowding  could  not  take  place. 

The  reports,  however,  of  the  English  commission  to  enquire  into  the 
condition  of  large  towns,  as  well  as  those  of  the  Committee  of  the  Legis 
lature  of  New  York,  to  enquire  into  the  condition  of  tenant-houses  in  the 
city  of  New  York,  the  Sanitary  Committee  of  Massachusetts,  and  the  report 
of  the  First  Committee  on  Public  Hygiene  of  the  American  Medical  Asso 
ciation,  show  that  the  tendency  of  the  poorer  classes  of  the  inhabitants  of 


INFLUENCE  OF  THE  SEASONS.  157 

populous  cities  on  both  continents  is  to  congregate  in  large  numbers  in  the 
most  confined  and  unhealthy  portions  of  the  places  in  which  they  reside. 

The  evidences  are  too  manifest  to  admit  of  a  denial  of  this  fact,  and  it 
becomes  a  matter  of  importance  therefore,  in  estimating  the  relative  salu 
brity  of  a  country,  to  ascertain  what  portion  of  this  class  of  inhabitants  are 
residents  of  town,  and  what  portion  reside  in  the  country.  The  estimate 
of  Mr.  De  Bow  has  assigned  to  three-fourths  of  the  population  of  the 
United  States  a  country  residence.  The  justness  of  this  estimate  is  con 
firmed  by  the  statistics  of  the  occupations  of  the  free  male  inhabitants  of 
this  country  over  fifteen  years  of  age,  from  which  it  would  appear  that  of 
5,371,876,  whose  occupations  were  defined,  2,400,583  were  engaged  in 
agricultural  pursuits. 

The  registration  returns  of  the  respective  States,  although  varying 
somewhat  in  detail,  appear  to  corroborate  the  correctness  of  the  census 
returns,  in  regard  to  the  seasons  upon  which  mortality  makes  the  largest 
demands.  Mr.  Shattuck  prepared  a  table  showing  the  percentage  of  deaths 
in  each  of  the  four  seasons  which  occurred  in  Massachusetts  in  the  two 
years  terminating  with  18-45,  from  which  it  would  appear  that  the  greatest 
mortality  occurred  in  August  and  September,  and  the  least  in  May  and 
June  :— 

Months.  184-1.  1815. 

WINTER — January,  February,  March,       .  .         23.82  24.70 

SPUING — April,  May,  Juno,                     .  .             21.21  20.41 

SUMMKK — July,  August,  September,         .  .        .        28.80  20.80 

AUTUMN — October,  November,  December,  .         .             2G.17  25.03 

In  this  table  the  winter  has  been  made  to  terminate  with  the  31st  of 
March,  instead  of  the  1st  of  March,  as  it  is  presumed  to  have  done,  in  the 
computation  of  deaths  given  in  the  census  returns.  The  English  report 
adopts  the  same  arrangement  of  months,  as  that  selected  bv  Mr.  Shattuek. 


158 


INFLUENCE    OF    THE    SEASONS 


As  a  difference  appears  to  exist  as  to  the  division  of  the  seasons,  it  may 
be  more  satisfactory  to  define  the  months  in  which  the  mortality  absolutely 
occurred,  and  with  this  view  a  table  is  presented,  giving  the  number  of 
deaths  which  occurred  in  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  during  the  three  years 
terminating  with  January  1st,  1856,  and  the  months  in  which  they  took 
place : — 


Months. 
January, 
February, 
Mar  en, 
April, 
May, 
Juno, 
July, 
August, 
September, 
October, 
November, 
December, 
Not  stated, 

Aggregate, 


Males. 

Females. 

Unknown. 

Totals. 

2,296 

2,344 

10 

4,650 

2,212 

2,214 

36 

4,462 

2,555 

2,621 

43 

5,219 

2,450 

2,481 

21 

4,952 

2,227 

2,239 

38 

4,504 

2,103 

m  2,052 

17 

m  4,172 

2,780 

2,679 

32 

5,491 

M3,71G 

M3,733 

53 

M  7,502 

3,548 

3,524 

59 

7,131 

2,618 

2,733 

44 

5,395 

m  2,092 

2,116 

24 

4,232 

2,303 

2,378 

37 

4,718 

37 

40 

8 

85 

30,937 


31,154 


422          62,513 


A   similar    table  is    given  for  the    State    of  Kentucky    for    the    year 

1853:- 

Months. 
January, 
February, 
March,     . 
April, 
May, 
June, 
July, 


Deaths. 

Months. 

Deaths. 

m544 

August, 

.     M  1,053 

626 

September, 

906 

696 

October, 

802 

685 

November, 

631 

615 

December, 

723 

705 

984 

Unknown, 

441 

ON    MORTALITY. 


159 


And  likewise  one    tabulated   in   a   somewhat   different    manner,    but 
embracing  the  same  information,  for  Rhode  Island : — 


No. 

Percentage. 

No. 

Percentage. 

January, 

323 

6.83 

August, 

.    M717 

14.93 

February, 

336 

7.00 

September, 

542 

11.28 

March, 

384 

7.90 

October, 

403 

8.39 

April, 

335 

6.97 

November, 

327 

6.81 

May, 

349 

7.27 

December, 

314 

6.54 

June, 

m310 

6.45 

Unknown, 

[6] 

.... 

July, 

458 

9.54 

Totals,     . 

4809 

100.00 

"  The  mortality  of  Providence  for  fifteen  years,  as  shown  in  Dr.  Collins' 
tables,  corresponded  very  closely  with  the  above.  The  proportions  of 
deaths  in  the  several  months  were  as  follows : — 


Pel-  cent. 

Per  cent. 

January, 

6.81 

July,      . 

9.55 

February, 

6.82 

August, 

.      M14.96 

March, 

7.67 

September, 

.       10.66 

April, 

6.76 

October, 

8.46 

May, 

6.99 

November, 

7.20 

June, 

m6.45 

December, 

7.67 

In  connection  with  the  mortality  of  the  different  seasons,  as  here 
presented,  that  which  occurs  upon  the  Pacific  coast  becomes  important,  as 
presenting  a  new  arrangement  of  climactic  influences,  and  a  somewhat  novel 
condition  of  society.  The  circumstances  connected  with  the  settlement  of 
California  arc  so  peculiar  as  to  render  the  facts  derived  from  its  vital 
statistics  a  matter  of  considerable  interest,  and  it  fortunately  occurs  that 
these  facts,  although  embracing  the  results  of  but  a  single  year,  enables  this 
comparison  to  be  instituted. 


52 

19 

3 

74 

82 

32 

7 

121 

80 

25 

5 

110 

84 

2i> 

5 

118 

80 

20 

7 

113 

75 

30 

5 

110 

74 

15 

5 

94 

82 

24 

9 

115 

C8 

20 

3 

'91 

03 

15 

10 

88 

01 

30 

8 

99 

GO 

20 

7 

87 

1(50  INFLUENCE    OF    THE    SEASONS 

The  annexed  table  shows  the  monthly  mortality  of  San  Francisco  from 
1st  June,  1855,  to  1st  Jnnc,  185G  :— 

Males.  Females.          Still-born.  Totals. 

June, 

July,     . 

August,    . 

September, 

October, 

November,   . 

December, 

January, 

February, 

March, 

April,       .... 

May,     . 

Totals,  .         .  8G1  291  74  1,220 

Dr.  Sanger,  from  whose  very  excellent  report  to  the  Mutual  Life  Insur 
ance  Company,  on  the  mortality  of  California,  this  table  has  been  taken,  adds : 
— "  From  this  table,  it  Avill  be  observed  that  the  greatest  mortality  occurs 
in  autumn,  and  the  least  in  the  spring  months — the  former  season  having 
an  excess  of  73  deaths  over  the  latter.  The  maximum  of  mortality  is  found 
in  the  month  of  July,  when  there  were  121  deaths,  and  the  minimum  is  74 
deaths  in  June.  If  we  examine  the  table  comparatively  with  reference  to 
the  causes  of  fatality  for  these  two  months,  we  shall  find  that  the  excess 
of  deaths  in  July  is  partly  due  to  accidental  causes,  and  partly  to  an 
intensity  of  endemic,  epidemic  or  malarious  influences  prevailing  during 
this  month. 

"  With  respect  to  the  seasons,  Sacramento  is  similarly  placed  with  San 
Francisco,  in  its  mortality.     We  find,  however,   that  the  maximum  of  mor- 


ON    MORTALITY    IN    CALIFORNIA.  1G1 

tality  took  place  in  the  month  of  November,  when  there  were   30  deaths 
against  the  minimum  of  15  deaths  in  February. 

"From  January  to  August,  the  mortality  averages  17,  and  for  the 
remaining  five  months  over  25  monthly.  From  what  has  been  stated,  it  is 
apparent  that  the  greatest  mortality,  at  Sacramento,  occurs  during  the  mala 
rious  season.  This  result  is  not  surprising,  because  its  location  is  such  as  to 
make  it  a  favorite  habitant  for  miasmatic  disease.  We  regret  that  we  have 
not  before  us  the  causes  of  the  mortality  for  each  month  in  the  year,  from 
an  inspection  of  which  we  could  arrive  at  more  positive  conclusions. 

"There  are  important  reasons  why  we  should  regard  the  exhibit  of 
mortality  in  San  Francisco  as  an  excess,  when  compared  in  proportionate 
terms  with  the  general  fatality  of  the  State.  We  shall  have  occasion  to 
refer  to  the  mortality  of  Sacramento,  in  confirmation  of  our  opinion.  Sacra 
mento  City  is  the  principal  resting-place  on  the  great  thoroughfare  to  the 
northern  mines,  and  in  reference  to  its  position  geographically,  ought  to 
afford  just  comparative  views  of  the  rate  of  mortality  from  malarious  causes 
in  this  immense  valley. 

"In  the  first  place,  San  Francisco  is  the  gateway  by  which  the  large 
emigration  constantly  arriving  here,  as  the  commercial  emporium  of  the 
Pacific,  becomes  gradually  dispersed  over  the  whole  interior.  The  principal 
influx  is  from  the  Atlantic  States,  and  of  late  years  the  routes  via  the 
Panama  or  Nicaragua  Isthmus  have  been  preferred  to  the  more  tedious 
journey  across  the  plains.  The  almost  malignant  type  of  miasmatic  fever, 
endemic,  in  the  land  crossings  from  ocean  to  ocean,  is  well  known.  To  cut 
short  premises,  already  familiar  enough  to  the  public,  from  the  severity  of 
past  experience,  we  are  having  a  population  thrown  upon  us  semi-monthly, 
to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  an  invalid  population,  although  with  the 
improved  facilities  for  transit  not  likely  to  suffer  so  much  in  the  future. 

'Then,  again,   we  have  had  the  usual  history  of  scurvy  and  typhus 
20 


]  02  OK.     SAMiKH    ON    THE 

attached  to  our  emigrant  ships  in  the  long  sea  voyages  around  Cape  Horn, 
from  Australia,  the  Pacific  Islands  and  the  East  Indies,  under  circumstances 
where  a  large  number  of  human  beings  are  crowded  together  in  bulk,  with 
limited  accommodation  for  their  wants,  breathing  a  close  and  impure 
atmosphere,  and  provided,  perhaps,  with  a  scanty  supply  of  nourishment, 
or  one  unsuited  to  the  requirements  of  life  at  sea.  The  fatality  from  these 
causes  has  sometimes  been  frightful  among  the  Chinese  emigrants.  For 
example,  in  the  months  of  August  and  September,  1854,  out  of  4700  Chinese 
who  arrived  here,  there  was  a  mortality  of  300  in  port. 

"  In  two  of  the  vessels  that  arrived  here  during  these  months,  there  is 
a  reported  fatality  of  one  out  of  five  of  the  passengers  during  the  voyage. 
Prom  an  inspection  of  the  books  of  entry,  at  the  Custom-House,  there  is 
reason  to  doubt  whether  the  captains  of  ships  have  in  all  instances  during 
this  period  made  faithful  returns  of  the  extent  of  the  mortality  occurring  on 
shipboard. 

"  Lastly,  our  city,  in  a  sanitory  sense,  may  be  considered  the  hospital  of 
the  State.  The  invalid,  from  all  portions  of  the  interior,  naturally  enough 
finds  his  way  to  San  Francisco,  perhaps  to  seek  a  change  in  climate,  or 
responsible  medical  advice,  or  to  extend  the  facilities  for  successful  treat 
ment,  and  to  secure  for  himself  the  full  enjoyment  of  those  comforts  and 
personal  attentions  which  his  enfeebled  condition  demands,  and  which  are 
most  amply  afforded  in  the  metropolis  of  a  new  country. 

"  The  mortality  in  our  public  institutions,  the  County  Hospital  and  the 
U.  S.  Marine  Hospital,  illustrates  the  force  of  our  observations.  The  for 
mer  averages  in  the  neighborhood  of  170  patients  constantly  under  treat 
ment,  the  latter  about  200,  exclusively  seamen.  The  combined  mortality 
from  these  hospitals  has  been  16  per  cent,  of  the  entire  mortality  of  the 
city.  It  should  be  remarked,  that  more  than  one-third  of  the  patients 
received  into  the  County  Hospital  are  properly  residents  in  other  counties, 


MOKTAUTY    OF    CALIFORNIA.  1(53 

who  may  come  here  voluntarily,  or,  as  there  is  reason  to  believe,  in  many 
instances  by  the  direct  connivance  of  the  local  authorities  to  free  themselves 
from  the  burden  of  their  support.* 

The  registration  returns  of  many  of  the  States,  among  their  other 
numerous  defects,  fail  to  indicate  the  months  in  which  the  deaths  included 
in  their  reports  took  place.  There  is  a  sufficient  uniformity  among  those 
which  have  not  failed  in  this  particular  to  show  that  the  maximum  of 
mortality  in  the  United  States  is  reached  about  the  close  of  summer  or  the 
beginning  of  autumn,  and  its  minimum  about  the  termination  of  winter  or 
beginning  of  spring. 

This  is  precisely  the  reverse  from  what  occurs  in  England  and  Sweden  ; 
the  maximum  in  the  latter  country  being  attained  in  April,  and  the  mini 
mum  in  October,  nor  is  the  month  upon  which  the  maximum  and  minimum 
of  mortality  falls  the  same  in  every  part  of  the  United  States.  It  has 
already  been  seen  that  a  difference  in  this  regard  was  indicated  by  the 
census  returns;  and  were  the  registration  reports  of  the  various  States 
sufficiently  numerous,  and  accurate  in  detail,  it  would  be  possible  to  show 
an  important  difference  in  this  respect  between  the  great  geographical 
divisions  of  the  country. 

As  a  general  rule,  however,  the  law  of  mortality  which  prevails  in  the 
United  States  is  tolerably  constant  and  uniform  in  attaining  its  highest 
altitude  in  that  season  of  the  year  when  summer  merges  into  autumn, 
and  when  the  heat  is  most  intense.  Nor  does  the  law  appear  to  bo  affected 
by  a  town  or  country  residence,  the  prevalence  or  absence  of  an  epidemic, 
ahealthy  or  unhealthy  season,  but  pursues  its  course  with  great  uniformity 
year  after  year,  and  invariably  demands  of  this  particular  season  the  largest 
number  of  its  victims. 

*  Report  on  the  Mortality  of  California,  by  A.  F.  Sangcr,  M.  D. 


104  EFFECT    OF    LOCALITY 

In  order1  to  illustrate  the  effect  of  locality  upon  the  rate  of  mortality, 
the  annexed  table,  showing  the  mortality  of  various  cities  in  different  parts 
of  the  United  States,  is  introduced  :— 

Per  cent, 

Boston,  39  years,     1811  to  1849,  .         2.45 

Lowell,  13       "         1836  to  1848,  .         .     2.11 

Xcw  York,       45       "         1S05  to  1849,  .  2.96 

Philadelphia,   34       "         1807  to  1840,  .         .         .     2.55 

Baltimore,         14       "         183C  to  1849,         .         .         .         2.49 

(  Whites,     .         .     2.48 

Charleston,       27       "         1822  to  1 848 ,1  Blacks,  .         2.64 

(  Both,         .         .     2.57 

Savannah,          8       "         1840  to  1847,     Whites,  4.16 

New  Orleans,  4i       "         1846  to  1S50,  .         .         .     8.10 

This  table,  which  was  prepared  with  great  care  by  Dr.  Simonds,  of 
New  Orleans,  exhibits  the  startling  difference  of  6  per  cent,  in  the  annual 
mortality  between  the  healthiest  and  most  unhealthy  localities,  and  further 
shows  that  in  each  particular  place  a  rate  of  mortality  different  from  that 
of  all  the  others  prevails.  Had  the  opportunity  presented  itself  of  ascer 
taining  the  difference  between  town  and  country  in  each  of  these  localities, 
it  would  doubtless  have  exhibited  a  condition  of  things  highly  in  favor  of 
a  country  life. 

But  the  most  remarkable  difference  is,  that  which  is  exhibited  between 
the  cities  of  the  north  and  south,  as  represented  on  the  one  side  by  New 
York  and  Philadelphia,  and  on  the  other  by  Savannah  and  New  Orleans. 
In  neither  of  these  instances  docs  there  exist  a  means  of  comparing  them 
with  the  rural  population  by  which  they  are  surrounded,  other  than  such 
as  is  afforded  by  the  census  returns.  Were  there  in  existence  State  Regis 
ters,  as  accurate  and  carefully  compiled  as  those  of  Massachusetts,  by  which 
this  comparison  could  be  made,  they  would  doubtless  furnish  information, 
both  curious  and  instructive. 


UI'ON    MORTALITY. 

Dr.  Simonds,  in  liis  remarks  on  the  high  rate  of  mortality  of  New 
Orleans,  says,  that  it  has  been  in  a  great  degree  attributed  to  the  reckless 
ness  of  its  floating  population — to  which  opinion  he  is  not  disposed  to 
assent. 

"  The  only  idea,"  he  adds,  "  to  be  attached  to  the  term  floating  popu 
lation  is  that  of  persons  who,  though  in  the  city,  have  not  by  length  of 
residence  acquired  citizenship,  or  identified  themselves  with  the  city.  This 
population  must  therefore  consist  of  three  classes — those  who  visit  the  city 
chiefly  for  pleasure  and  amusement ;  those  who  have  visited  us  for  the  trans 
action  of  business,  to  dispose  of  their  crops,  purchase  their  supplies,  &c.,  &c.  ; 
and  those  who  have  come  here  for  the  purpose  of  earning  a  livelihood,  or 
of  making  a  fortune,  whose  intention  is  to  settle  here  and  make  it  their 
place  of  residence,  if  they  can  do  so  consistently  with  their  future  welfare. 
The  first  two  classes  are  here  but  for  a  few  days,  or  at  most  a  few  weeks  ; 
they  have  left  behind  their  ties  of  family  or  business  that  prevent  a  pro 
longed  sojournmcnt  in  the  city ;  they  are  ready  to  flee  at  a  moment's 
warning  on  an  alarm  of  general  sickness  or  a  little  personal  indisposition  ; 
they  reside  at  hotels  and  boarding-houses,  in  which,  so  far  as  my  observa 
tion  and  inquiries  go,  there  are  but  few  deaths  ;  and  these  classes,  therefore, 
cannot  contribute  essentially  to  the  mortality  of  the  city. 

"  But  is  the  floating  population  of  New  Orleans  so  much  larger  than 
that  of  other  cities,  as  to  account  for  a  mortality  double  that  of  any  other 
city  ?  Has  New  Orleans  a  greater  number  of  visitors  in  the  pursuit  cither 
of  pleasure  or  of  business  than  New  York  ?  Certainly  not.  During  a  few 
months,  say  for  half  the  year,  New  Orleans  contains  a  large  number  of 
strangers,  and  also  a  large  number  of  persons  who  claim  citizenship  and  do 
business  here,  but  who  fly  during  the  hot  and  sickly  season  to  more  con 
genial  and  salubrious  climes.  But  New  York  is  constantly  thronged  with 
visitors — its  business  season  may  bo  said  to  continue  during  the  Avhole  year — 


1()6  I)K.    SIMONS    OX    THE 

and  there  is  no  season  during  which  there  is  not  collected  together  a  larerc 

o  GO 

number  of  seekers  after  pleasure.  Places  of  amusement,  which  are  sup 
ported  by  strangers,  arc  with  us  closed  during  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
year, — but  not  so  in  New  York.  Our  hotels  arc  deserted  during  the  sum 
mer — theirs  arc  always  filled.  But  with  us  even  a  large  portion  of  the 
private  residences  are  closed  for  two,  three,  or  four  months  of  the  year. 

"  The  third  class  of  the  floating  population  consists  chiefly  of  immi 
grants  and  adventurers,  of  perhaps  but  small  or  no  means,  who  have  cut  off 
the  ties  that  bound  them  elsewhere,  and  who,  though  but  a  short  time  resi 
dent  here,  are,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  our  own  population.  This  class 
is  enumerated  in  our  census,  pay  taxes,  contribute  by  their  labor  to  the 
prosperity  of  the  city,  and  will  (if  they  escape  the  hand  of  death)  become 
as  truly  citizens  as  seven-tenths  of  our  present  population,  of  whom  indeed 
they  constitute  a  large  proportion.  That  this  class  contributes  largely  to 
swell  our  bills  of  mortality,  is  indisputable ;  but  that  the  deaths  from  this 
class  should  be  included  in  our  calculations  on  the  health  of  the  city,  is 
equally  certain. 

'  If  New  Orleans  really  has  proportionally  a  larger  floating  population 
than  other  cities,  the  reason  is  very  obvious.  Of  the  number  attracted 
hither  by  the  advantages  of  the  city,  a  greater  proportion  die  speedily,  and 
consequently  a  smaller  proportion  live  sufficiently  long  to  become  identified 
with  the  city.  What  length  of  time  is  requisite  to  change  the  character  of 
those  who  come  to  reside  in  the  city,  from  a  floating  to  a  permanent  popu 
lation  ?  When  this  is  settled,  the  record  of  deaths  can  be  examined  with 
reference  to  this  question.  Life  Insurance  offices  recognise  no  fixed  period 
of  time,  but  require  that  the  applicant  shall  have  experienced  the  yellow 
fever,  which  on  an  average  will  be  epidemic  every  three  years.  Our  State 
laws  require  two  years  residence  to  entitle  a  citizen  of  other  States  to  be 
considered  a  citizen  of  this  State.  The  United  States  requires  the  foreign 


MOHTAL1TV  OF  NEW  OHLEANS.  1G7 

immigrant  to  have  resided  live  years  in  the  United  States.  The  annual 
reports  of  the  Charity  Hospital  have  generally  stated  the  period  of  resi 
dence  as  under  or  over  three  years.  Let  us  say,  then,  that  three  years  is  a 
fair  average  to  constitute  the  stranger  a  citizen  in  this  respect.  Of  one 
hundred  persons  settling  in  New  York  in  three  yeo.rs,  nine  will  have  died 
and  ninety-one  will  become  permanently  resident ;  while  of  one  hundred 
settling  in  New  Orleans,  twenty-four  will  have  died  in  the  three  years, 
leaving  but  seventy-six  permanent  residents,  the  law  of  mortality  of  the 
general  population  being  applied  to  the  class  of  unacclimatcd.  This  state 
ment  is  not  strictly  accurate — in  fact,  the  difference  would  be  very  much 
greater,  as  those  who  maintain  the  position  that  our  mortality  is  caused  by 
foreigners,  and  that  for  natives  and  the  acclimated  our  city  is  very  healthy, 
must  admit  a  much  greater  difference  in  the  mortality  of  the  newly  arrived 
population.  Again,  suppose  that  on  the  1st  July,  18-17,  one  thousand  per 
sons  settled  in  each  city,  there  would  remain  to  be  enumerated  in  the 
census  on  the  1st  July,  1850,  less  than  seven  hundred  and  sixty  persons  in 
New  Orleans,  and  more  than  nine  hundred  and  ten  persons  in  every  other 
large  city.  Our  neglect  of  sanitary  measures,  our  indifference  to  the 
deaths  of  strangers,  and  our  criminal  disregard  of  the  lives  and  welfare  of 
those  who  settle  among  us,  has  done  more  to  retard  the  advance  of  New 
Orleans  than  all  the  assertions  of  its  salubrity  can  possibly  remove. 

"  It  may  be  said,  however,  that  the  floating  population  are  foreign  im 
migrants,  who  are  merely  passing  through  our  city.  Let  us,  then,  examine 
the  statistics  of  immigration,  to  see  what  light  they  throw  upon  this  point. 
According  to  a  statement  published  in  connection  with  the  reports  of  the 
New  Orleans  Charity  Hospital,  the  total  arrivals  at  New  Orleans  from  foreign 
ports,  coastwise,  and  by  steamboats,  during  seven  years,  from  1842  to  1848, 
was  222,122 — -while  the  arrivals  at  New  York  from  foreign  ports  alone 
during  the  same  period,  was  738,402.  (Hunt's  Magazine,  XXI.,  G37. )  But 


1G8  UK.    J5A11TON    ON    THE 

how  do  the  arrivals  at  the  two  cities  from  foreign  ports  alone  compare  ? 
During  the  year  1847  the  total  arrivals  in  the  United  States  was  250,000, 
of  whom  106,110  landed  in  New  York — leaving  but  90,000  for  the  rest  of 
the  United  States.  (Ibid.)  Thus  about  two-thirds  (G 6. 44  per  cent.)  of  all 
foreign  immigrants  landed  in  New  York.  Again,  from  1845  to  1848  inclu 
sive,  four  years,  104,293  persons  arrived  from  foreign  ports  in  New  Orleans 
—number  considerably  less  than  the  population  of  New  Orleans  and  La 
fayette  by  the  late  census — while  556,209  arrived  in  New  York,  being  more 
than  the  population  of  that  city  at  the  last  enumeration.  The  attempt  to 
excuse  the  great  mortality  of  New  Orleans  by  referring  it  to  the  vast 
number  of  immigrants  lauded  in  our  city,  is  not  sustained  by  the  facts."  * 

Arc  these  ill-fated  cities,  in  which  mortality  rages  to  such  a  fearful 
extent,  dark  spots  in  the  midst  of  an  otherwise  sunny  landscape,  or  do  they 
bear  in  their  high  rate  of  mortality  but  a  just  comparison  with  the  sur 
rounding  country  ?  Dr.  Barton,  of  New  Orleans,  whose  exertions,  in  all 
matters  pertaining  to  public  health  and  philanthropic  objects,  have  been 
unwearied,  has  prepared  a  scries  of  tables,  from  the  information  furnished 
to  him  by  the  marshal,  which  divides  the  mortality  of  the  State,  as  col 
lected  by  the  United  States  authorities  among  the  respective  districts  in 
which  it  occurred,  and  gives  for  the  State  of  Louisiana  a  detailed  statement, 
which  should  have  been  extended  to  the  whole  Union  :— 

STATEMENT   OF   POPULATION    AND   DEATHS    IN    WESTERN  LOUISIANA,    1850. 
INHABITANTS.  DEATHS  FROM  CHOLEBA.  DEATHS  PER  CENT. 


Free.        Slaves.                 Total.  Free.         Slaves.               Without  Cholera.     With  Cholera. 

90,312        121,168                211,470  103              501                               5.09                           5.22 

EASTERN    DISTRICT  OF   LOUISIANA,    INCLUDING   NEW    ORLEANS. 

INHABITANTS.  DKATHS  FROM  CHOLERA.                      DEATHS  PER  CENT. 


Free.         Slaves.  Total.  Free.         Slaves.  Without  Cholera.     With  Cholera. 

181,300        122,7110  304,069  '.105  1040  3.23  4.34 

*  Simonda  on  the  Sanitary  Condition  of  Sew  Orleans,  p.  42. 


MORTALITY    OF    LOUISANA.  169 

These  tables  exhibit  a  mortality  without  a  parallel  in  the  United  States, 
and  show  that  there  are  causes  in  operation  throughout  the  State  tending 
to  render  it  eminently  unhealthy.  Dr.  Barton  alleges  that— 

"  The  period  adopted  for  taking  the  mortality  of  the  State,  with  its 
census,  has  been  an  unfortunate  one  for  Louisiana,  for  during  the  whole 
period  embraced  under  the  order  to  the  marshals  and  their  deputies  for 
this  enumeration,  viz.,  the  year  ending  in  June,  1850,  has  been  precisely 
one  of  those  periodical  cycles  alluded  to  in  the  former  part  of  this  report  as 
about  the  septcm-decenuial  period  for  the  return  of  epidemic  cholera.  Such 
has  been  the  fact,  and  large  mortality  has  resulted  in  the  whole  zymotic 
class  (to  which  cholera  belongs)  ;  for  although  I  have  been  enabled  to 
separate  the  cholera  from  the  other  mortality  in  most  of  the  parishes,  yet 
the  mortality  has  been  much  larger  in  the  congenerous  diseases  of  this 
class,  than  usual ;  and  many  parishes  of  the  western  district  of  the  State, 
where  we  know  that  the  mortality  is  not  in  ordinary  years  more  than  one 
to  one-and-a-half  per  cent.,  has  been  made,  by  this  return,  to  show  four,  live, 
six,  eight  per  cent.,  and  upwards  !  This  is  to  be  deeply  regretted,  and  the 
only  remedy  to  be  found  is  in  the  enactment  of  a  registration  law  by  the 
State  Legislature,  through  which  the  actual  sanitary  condition  can  be  made 
known  annually." 

With  the  fact  that  the  mortality  of  New  Orleans  has  rarely  fallen 
below  four  per  cent.,  and  has  for  the  last  four  and  a-half  years  averaged 
8.10  per  cent.,  according  to  Dr.  Simonds'  estimate,  and  according  to  Dr. 
Barton,  for  the  entire  period  of  its  existence,  4.87  per  cent.,  it  cannot  be 
considered  otherwise  than  an  extremely  unhealthy  city.  Nor  can  a  rural 


*  Barton's  Vital  Statistics  of  Louisiana,  p.  21. 

21 


1 70  Dli.     NOTT    ON 

population,  whoso  mortality  reaches  5.22  per  cent,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
western  parishes  of  Louisiana,  be  called  a  healthy  one.  The  remarkably 
low  rate  of  mortality  which  was  found  to  obtain  in  some  of  the  eastern 
parishes  of  the  State,  and  which  appear  more  striking  in  contrast  with  the 
great  mortality  of  the  other  portions  of  the  State,  would  lead  to  the  belief 
that  an  amelioration  of  its  condition  might  be  effected ;  but  when,  and  in 
what  mode,  is  left  for  those  who  arc  familiarized  to  each  locality  to  deter 
mine. 

To  what  extent  the  baneful  influences  which  arc  seen  to  have  foothold 
in  Louisiana  extend  to  the  neighboring  States,  cannot,  in  the  absence  of 
more  exact  information,  be  accurately  judged.  It  unfortunately  happens, 
that  in  the  contiguous  State  of  Mississippi,  which  it  is  feared  is  more 
unhealthy  than  the  returns  have  made  it,  the  number  of  deaths  were  more 
carelessly  noted  than  in  any  other  State.  That  these  influences  do  extend 
for  some  distance  along  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  including  the  lowlands,  which 
lie  contiguous  to  its  borders  in  the  Texas,  Mississippi,  Alabama  and  Florida, 
and  gradually  lose  themselves  in  the  more  elevated  regions  of  these  States, 
appears  to  be  quite  evident.  It  is  quite  certain  that  the  section  of  country 
embraced  within  the  limits  just  defined,  is  possessed  of  features  peculiar  to 
itself,  and  cannot  be  considered  as  a  standard  by  which  to  characterize  any 
other  section. 

Dr.  Xott,  of  Mobile,  in  alluding  to  these  characteristics  says,  that  in 
the  Southern  States  are  high  and  healthy  sand  hills,  placed  in  immediate 
contiguity  with  the  rich  alluvial  lands  of  the  rivers.  The  former  are 
healthy,  while  on  the  low  lands  the  most  deadly  malarial  fevers  prevail  in 
summer  and  autumn.  "  Let  us  suppose,"  he  remarks,  "  that  a  thousand 
inhabitants  of  Great  Britain  or  Germany,  should  be  landed  at  Mobile  about 
the  month  of  May,  and  one-third  placed  on  the  hills,  one-third  in  town,  and 
the  remainder  in  the  fenny  lands  around  the  latter.  At  the  end  of  six 


SOUTH-WESTERN    MORTALITY.  171 

months  the  result  would  be,  that  the  first  third  would  complain  much  of 
heat,  would  perspire  enormously,  become  enervated,  but  no  one  would  be 
seriously  sick,  and  probably  none  would  die  from  the  effects  of  the  climate. 
The  second  third,  or  those  in  the  city,  if  it  happened  to  be  a  year  of 
epidemic  yellow  fever,  Avould,  to  say  the  least,  be  decimated,  or  even 
one-half  might  die,  while  the  resident  acclimated  population  were  enjoying 
perfect  health.  The  remaining  portion,  or  those  in  the  fenny  districts, 
would  escape  yellow  fever,  but  most  of  them  would  be  attacked  with 
intermittent  and  remittent  fevers,  bowel  affections,  and  all  forms  of  malarial 
or  marsh  diseases,  fewer  would  die,  but  a  larger  proportion  would  come 
out  with  broken  constitutions.*" 

Independent  of  the  northern  and  southern  climates,  which  have  fre 
quently  been  alluded  to,  and  which  find  their  types  in  Massachusetts  and 
New  York  on  the  one  side,  and  Kentucky  and  the  Carolinas  on  the  other, 
is  this  southwestern  climate,  stamped  by  characteristics  bestowed  upon  it 
by  its  proximity  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  the  peculiar  character  of  the 
shore  which  borders  it,  and  which  arc  observed  in  their  more  complete 
development  upon  the  borders  of  the  Gulf,  within  the  territory  of  Mexico. 

It  has  been  seen  that  each  of  these  divisions  possesses  marked  and 
characteristic  features,  distinguishing  the  one  from  the  other,  and  rendering 
them  amenable  to  different  Laws  of  mortality.  The  lawTs  by  which  the  two 
former  arc  apparently  regulated,  correspond  pretty  nearly  to  those  of  simi 
larly  situated  countries  in  Europe,  but  in  no  European  country  have  features 
of  mortality  been  discovered  which  would  assimilate  in  character  to  the 
southwestern  part  of  the  United  States. 


*  Noft  and  Oliddon's  Indigenous  Rnccs,  j>.  361. 


172  CLASSIFICATION    0!'' 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

DISEASES. 

In  forming  an  estimate  of  the  comparative  healthfullness  of  a  county  as 
a  whole,  or  of  individual  portions  of  it  isolated  from  the  others,  it  is  neces 
sary  to  ascertain  the  chief  diseases  which  furnish  the  outlets  for  human  life, 
and  their  relative  prevalence  in  the  one  or  the  other  sections. 

Without  positive  information  concerning  the  ages  at  death,  the  infor 
mation  afforded  by  a  simple  record  of  the  diseases  which  terminated  life 
would  be  valueless,  but  with  this  information  they  become  of  the  highest 
value ;  hence  observations  made  in  small  places  where  the  diseases  can  be 
accurately  registered,  are  usually  considered  of  more  value  in  furnishing 
data  for  calculation,  than  in  larger  ones  where  the  record  is  carelessly  or 
inefficiently  collated. 

It  has  heretofore  been  found  exceedingly  difficult  to  arrange  such  a 
registration  for  diseases  in  large  places  where  no  possible  information 
concerning  them  could  be  obtained,  except  such  as  the  register  afforded, 
as  would  clearly  identify  them,  and  admit  of  deductions  being  drawn  from 
them  ;  thus,  Boston,  New  York,  Charleston,  Baltimore  and  New  Orleans 
have  each  had  their  peculiar  classification,  frequently  so  diverse  in  arrange 
ment  as  not  to  admit  of  comparison,  without  great  caution. 


DIFFERENT    DISEASES  L73 

This  difficulty  has  been  remedied  within  a  few  years  by  the  very 
general  adoption  of  Farr's  classification  of  diseases,  which  all  the  States, 
and  most  of  the  cities,  at  present  employ. 

This  classification  divides  diseases  into  two  general  classes  of  zymotic 
and  sporadic  diseases — the  former  term  being  used  to  designate  epidemic, 
endemic  and  contagious  diseases,  and  the  latter  those  whose  cause  is  found 
in  the  individual  attacked  by  the  disease.  An  example  of  a  zymotic  disease 
is  given  in  Asiatic  cholera,  and  of  sporadic  in  dropsy.  Zymotic  diseases 
usually  prevail  in  groups,  attacking  at  the  same  time  a  large  number  of 
individuals,  and  are  prevalent  at  one  time,  and  absent  at  another.  Sporadic 
diseases,  on  the  contrary,  occur  singly  and  scattered,  and  under  like  circum 
stances  are  generally  prevalent. 

An  additional  division  is  made  into  twelve  classes,  which  refer  to  the 
part  of  the  body  attacked  by  disease,  one  of  these  being  placed  under  the 
head  of  zymotic,  which  is  a  class  by  itself,  and  eleven  under  the  head  of 
sporadic,  thus : 

CLASSES    OF    DISEASE. 

1.   Zymotic  diseases. 

SPORADIC    DISEASES. 


2.  Of  uncertain  or  general  scat. 

.'].  Of  the  nervous  system. 

4.  Of  the  organs  of  respiration. 

5.  Of  the  organs  of  circulation. 
G.  Of  the  digestive  organs. 

7.  Of  the  urinary  organs. 


8.  Of  the  organs  of  generation. 

9.  Of  the  organs  of  locomotion. 

10.  Of  the  integumentary  system. 

11.  Of  old  age. 

1 2.  Of  external  causes. 


Since  the  adoption  of  this   arrangement,    which  is  very   methodical, 
and  at  the  same  time  quite  simple,  the  returns  of  diseases  have  been  much 


174  GENERAL    MORTALITY 

more  reliable  and  easily  classified.  In  collecting  the  number  of  deaths 
which  took  place  in  the  United  States,  in  the  year  1849-50,  this  classifica 
tion  was  given  to  the  United  States  marshals  and  their  assistants ;  and 
although  they  were  not  acquainted  with  the  names  of  diseases  and  their 
mode  of  arrangement,  yet,  with  the  aid  of  this  nomenclature,  they  were 
generally  enabled  to  make  a  tolerably  accurate  return  of  the  diseases 
returned  or  described  to  them. 

This  information  has  been  collated,  and  classified  in  such  a  manner  as 
to  embrace  within  a  few  tables  the  names  of  the  diseases,  the  season  in 
which  deaths  took  place,  the  age,  sex,  nativity,  occupation  and  color  of  the 
deceased,  from  which  it  will  be  seen  that  the  deaths  from  Zymotic  diseases, 
were  1.31,813  :- 

Of  which  died  of  Cholera,           .....  31,506 

"     Diarrhoea,     .  10,706 

"     Dysentery,       .         .                           .  20,556 

"     Fever,  general,     .         .         .  18,108 

"     Fever,  scarlet,                    .         .  9,584 

"     Fever,  typhoid.    .         .         .  13,099 


The  deaths  from  Sporadic  diseases  and  unknown,  wore,  192  210 

Of  which  died  of  Dropsy,  .         .  11,217 

"     Cephalitis,            .                  .  6,424 

"     Convulsions,     .  6,072 

"     Consumption,  33,516 

"     Pneumonia,     .                   .  12,130 

It  will  be  seen  by  an  examination  of  the  chief  causes  of  death,  that  a 
larger  proportion  of  deaths  are  embraced  in  the  slow  and  noiseless  army 
of  consumption,  than  in  the  more  terrific  and  apparently  fatal  one  of  Asiatic 


OF    THE    I'XIUX.  175 

cholera.  It  is  quite  certain,  that  the  deaths  from  both  of  these  diseases 
have  been  under-estimated,  and  probably  in  nearly  a  like  proportion.  The 
deaths  from  consumption,  in  Massachusetts,  and  the  northern  parts  of 
Europe,  usually  exceed  2,000,  out  of  every  10,000  deaths,  and  their  relative 
proportion  to  the  number  of  deaths  in  every  country  and  under  every 
variety  of  climate  is  very  large.  For  the  purpose  of  instituting  a  com 
parison  between  different  parts  of  the  Union,  in  order  to  ascertain  the  rela 
tive  prevalence  of  this  and  other  prominent  diseases  in  each,  the  following 
table  has  been  introduced,  showing  the  number  of  deaths  from  the  several 
causes  named,  which  took  place  in  each  state  named :— 


OHIO. 

NEW  YORK. 

MARYLAND. 

Deaths. 

Per  ct. 

Deaths. 

Per  ct. 

Deaths. 

I'er  ct. 

Apoplexy, 

123 

0.42 

356 

0.77 

60 

0.62 

Cholera, 

5,808 

20.05 

5,822 

10.57 

166 

1.72 

Consumption, 

2,558 

8.83 

6,691 

14.67 

1,101 

11.44 

"Dysentery, 

2,563 

8.83 

3,691 

8.11 

607 

6.30 

Fever  (general) 

1,479 

5.10 

799 

1.53 

139 

1.44 

"     Bilious, 

201 

0.08 

330 

0.72 

264 

2.74 

"     Congestive, 

112 

0.38 

73 

0.16 

44 

0.45 

"     Typhus, 

750 

2.59 

1,037 

2.27 

360 

3.74 

"     Scarlet, 

1,301 

4.49 

1,028 

2.26 

561 

5.83 

"     Yellow, 

5 

0.02 

16 

0.03 

6 

0.06 

Disease  of  Heart, 

137 

0.47 

545 

1.19 

129 

1.34 

Old  Age, 

506 

1.74 

1,393 

3.05 

278 

2.88 

Paralysis, 

197 

0.67 

431 

0.94 

105 

1.08 

Pneumonia, 

895 

3.08 

1,661 

3.20 

149 

1.54 

Scrofula, 

101 

0.34 

177 

0.38 

35 

0.36 

Dropsy, 

624 

2.15 

1,496 

3.28 

312 

3.24 

This  statement  would  appear  to  indicate  a  greater  prevalence  of  con 
sumption  and  dysentery  in  northern,  and  of  fevers  and  dropsical  affections 
in  southern  latitudes.  Were  this  bsolutcly  true,  it  is  easy  to  see  what 


17(5  INFLUENCE  OF  THE  SEASONS. 

important  results  would  flow  from  an  exact  knowledge  of  the  circumstances 
connected  with  the  mortality  of  the  different  latitudes.  The  returns  are  not 
sufficiently  accurate  to  warrant  the  assumption  of  such  an  important  con 
clusion  from  them  alone,  but  the  fact  that  neighboring  States  in  one  latitude 
and  contiguous  States  in  another,  should  exhibit  results  which  naturally 
lead  to  such  an  inference,  is  a  sufficient  reason  for  making  a  very  careful 
examination  of  such  facts  as  would  sustain  or  overturn  the  conclusion. 

The  present  mortuary  returns  of  the  general  government  and  the 
States,  do  not  supply  sufficient  numbers  of  these  facts  to  warrant  the  estab 
lishment  of  a  deduction  from  them.  Did  consumption  prevail  so  much 
more  extensively  at  the  north  than  at  the  south,  as  these  returns  would 
appear  to  show,  it  might  naturally  be  supposed  that  its  cases  would  be 
increased,  and  their  progress  accelerated  by  the  rigid  season  of  winter,  but 
an  examination  of  the  returns  show  that  the  effect  of  the  seasons  upon  con 
sumption  is  comparatively  slight,  and  that  if  winter  produces  any  effect  at 
all,  it  is  rather  an  ameliorating  than  an  injurious  one.  The  distribution  of 
the  deaths  from  consumption  among  the  seasons,  is  as  follows  :— 

Spring.  Summer.  Autumn.  Winter. 

9679  8,742  7,982  6,800 

Below  will  be  found  a  table,  embracing  the  deaths  from  consumption 
in  Massachusetts  for  five  years,  terminating  with  1855  :— 


Months.  Totals.  Percentage. 

January,  1,744  7.90 

February,  1,691  7.66 

March,  1,966  8.90 

April,  1,948  8.82 

May,  1,942  8.78 

June,  1,698  7.60 

July,  1,790  8.10 


Months.  Totals.  Percentage. 

August,  1,884  8.53 

September,  1,947  8.81 

October,  1,850  8.38 

November,  1,739  7.87 

December,  1,869  8.46 

Unknown,  23  . 10 


Totals,        22,091        100.00 


UPON    MORTALITY.  177 

The  deaths  in  Kentucky  from  consumption,  in  1852,  were  956,  or  9.20 
per  cent,  of  the  deaths  from  all  known  causes.  In  1853,  the  deaths  from 
this  disease  were  84G,  or  11.45  per  cent,  of  all  the  deaths.  The  months 
in  which  the  deaths  took  place  are  as  follows  :— 


Months.  Totals. 

January,          ...       57 

February,           .         .  67 

March,           ...  72 

April,        ...  104 

May,     ....  78 

June,                  .        .  79 


Months.  Totals. 

July,     ....  75 

August,     ...  69 

September,    ...  67 

October,    ...  62 

November,  .         .  62 

December,         .        .  64: 


From  these  various  tables,  it  appears  that  the  two  maximum  periods 
of  death  from  consumption  are  in  the  spring  and  autumn,  and  the  two  mini 
mum  periods  in  winter  and  summer.  In  this  respect  the  observations  made 
in  Kentucky  corresponded  very  nearly  with  those  made  in  Massachusetts. 
They  likewise  agree  as  to  the  age  upon  which  consumption  falls  most 
heavily,  which  is  between  twenty  and  thirty  years  of  age.  One-fourth  of 
all  the  deaths  which  occur  from  this  disease  are  singled  from  those  who  are 
at  this  interesting  period  of  life.  The  next  most  fatal  period  is  that  between 
thirty  and  forty,  after  which  the  proportion  of  deaths,  as  compared  with 
other  diseases,  or  with  itself  at  these  periods,  rapidly  declines. 

The  proportion  of  female  to  male  deaths  is  greater  than  in  most  other 
diseases;  in  Massachusetts  they  bear  the  relation  of  59.06  females  to  40.80 
males,  and  in  Kentucky  a  proportion  nearly  corresponding  to  this. 

But,  although  the  characteristics  of  the  disease  are  identical  in  both 
places,  and  exhibit  a  remarkable  similarity  in  the  season  of  the  year,  the 
period  of  life,  and  the  sex  upon  Avhich  it  falls,  yet  the  relation  which  it  bears 
to  other  diseases,  as  developed  by  these  returns,  is  widely  different,  and 
appears  to  corroborate  the  census  mortality  returns. 
22 


1  78  EFFECT    OF    LOCALITY 

Dr.  Bowditch,  of  Boston,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Massachusetts 
Medical  Society,  is  making  a  series  of  careful  examinations  throughout  the 
State  as  to  its  origin  and  possible  means  of  prevention,  from  which  it  is 
hoped  many  valuable  facts  may  be  derived,  even  should  he  fail  to  obtain 
any  information  by  which  its  progress  can  be  materially  arrested. 
Were  it  possible  to  extend  a  series  of  similar  observations,  minute  and 
accurate  enough  to  determine  its  relative  fatality  to  the  number  living 
or  the  aggregate  dead  over  the  whole  Union,  their  importance  would 
be  greatly  above  the  expenditure  required  for  their  prosecution,  or  the 
labor  necessary  for  their  accomplishment.  The  facts  already  elicited  lead 
to  the  belief  that  results  might  be  obtained,  which  would  not  only  be  gra 
tifying  but  in  the  highest  degree  beneficial  to  humanity. 

Next  to  consumption,  dysentery  is  the  most  fatal  disease  of  the  northern 
States,  and  a  very  serious  one  at  the  south.  Unlike  consumption,  its 
heaviest  demand  is  made  upon  the  earlier  years  of  life — full  one-half  of  all 
the  deaths  from  this  disease  taking  place  in  the  first  five  years  of  existence. 
It  also  differs  from  consumption  in  the  fact  that  it  is  amenable  to  the  in 
fluence  of  the  seasons.  It  prevails  to  the  greatest  extent  in  the  months  of 
August  and  September,  and  almost  entirely  ceases  in  the  depth  of  winter 
and  early  spring. 

In  Kentucky,  dysentery  is  so  fatal  a  disease,  that  it  is  styled  by  the 
Registrar  "the  great  scourge  of  the  State."  In  1852,  there  were  1,923 
cases,  which  constituted  18.47  per  cent,  of  the  entire  mortality  of  the  State. 
During  this  year  epidemic  cholera  prevailed  to  a  considerable  extent,  and 
caused  722  deaths.  In  the  following  year,  1853,  its  intensity  was  con 
siderably  diminished ;  but  it  yet  furnished  a  large  item  for  the  annual  list  of 
deaths — the  number  was  901.  In  some  portions  of  the  State  it  was  par 
ticularly  fatal ;  as  an  example,  out  of  113  deaths  returned  from  Simpson 
county,  84  were  ascribed  to  dysentery. 


UPON    MORTALITY.  179 

These  two  diseases  select  most  of  their  victims  from  comparatively 
early  life  ;  and  although  no  age  is  exempt  from  them,  yet  the  period  inter 
vening  between  twenty  and  thirty  years  of  age  is  that  upon  which  the 
former  falls  most  severely,  and  that  from  birth  to  five  years,  the  one  most 
susceptible  to  the  latter.  Nor  are  they  confined  exclusively  or  mostly  to 
city  life,  but  are  found  to  prevail  in  the  balmy  atmosphere  of  rural  districts, 
as  well  as  the  confined  and  vitiated  air  of  town. 

The  returns  of  Kentucky,  as  made  manifest  in  the  registration  reports 
just  cited,  and  by  the  mortality  tobies  of  the  census  of  1850,  exhibit  a 
larger  proportion  of  deaths  from  dysentery  than  the  other  States  whose 
latitude  is  equally  low.  This  corresponds  very  well  with  the  prevalent  opin 
ion  heretofore  entertained  by  the  medical  men  of  Kentucky,  unsustaincd 
by  statistical  evidence,  and  gleaned  exclusively  from  observation. 

How  far  the  peculiar  geological  formation,  upon  which  the  soil  of  the 
greater  part  of  the  State  reposes,  which  consists  of  a  disentegrated  grey 
and  blue  limestone,  contributes  to  bestow  this  unfortunate  precedence  on 
Kentucky,  or  whether  it  in  truth  exists  to  the  extent  hitherto  supposed  or 
revealed  by  the  returns  of  deaths,  are  questions  that  can  only  be  solved  by 
a  more  careful  notation  of  the  deaths  occurring  within  the  State,  and  the 
rendition  of  similar  returns  from  other  southern  States. 

Fever,  in  all  its  varieties,  except  scarlet  fever,  which  is  essentially  a 

disease  of  childhood,  and  dropsy,  fall  with  greatest  intensity  upon  middle 

j 

and  advanced  age.     An  examination  of  the  census  table,  giving  the  ages 

at  which  death  took  place  from  particular  diseases,  as  well  as  the  returns 
made  by  the  separate  States,  fully  sustain  this  opinion,  and  at  the  same  time 
show  that  a  greater  relative  proportion  of  these  diseases  occur  in  southern 
than  in  northern  climates. 

The  annexed  statement  shows  the  percentage  of  deaths  which  occurred 


180  EFFECT    OF    LOCALITY 

in  Massachusetts  for  a  period  of  twelve  years  and  in  Kentucky    for  one 
year,  from  each  of  the  causes  above  named  : — • 

Consumption.  Dysentery.  Fever.  Dropsy. 

Massachusetts,     .     .   '"22.44  7.54  7.08  2.34 

Kentucky,       .     .     .         9.20  18.47  15.18  2.21 

This  statement  covers  a  period  sufficiently  long,  in  the  State  of  Massa 
chusetts,  to  correct  the  errors  of  a  single  year,  and  without  doubt  gives  a 
faithful  representation  of  the  average  per  cent,  of  mortality  from  each  of 
the  diseases  included  in  the  list.  The  period  covered  by  Kentucky,  how 
ever,  is  too  short  to  be  equally  reliable;  besides,  in  the  year  indicated,  1852, 
dysentery  prevailed  in  an  epidemic  form  throughout  the  State,  and  was  un 
usually  fatal.  The  comparison  is  the  best  at  hand,  and  gives  some  concep 
tion  of  the  relative  prevalence  of  consumption,  fever  and  dropsy,  in  each  of 
the  respective  States. 

The  purpose,  however,  is  not  so  much  to  show  the  relative  prevalence 
of  the  one  or  the  other  disease,  in  these  two  States  alone,  as  to  indicate  by 
their  ratios  of  mortality,  taken  as  types  of  a  large  extent  of  country,  the 
particular  classes  of  disease  to  which  each  are  most  exposed,  and  which 
prove  the  most  destructive  to  human  life. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  no  series  of  statistics  of  mortality,  equally  re 
liable  with  those  of  Massachusetts,  are  to  be  found  in  any  southern  State, 
with  which  a  comparison  might  be  made  with  more  satisfactory  results  than 
the  one  just  instituted.  It  is  of  the  first  importance  to  ascertain  the  rela 
tive  prevalence  of  particular  diseases  in  particular  latitudes,  because  as  each 
falls  with  greatest  violence  upon  some  particular  period  of  life,  it  is  possible 
to  arrive  at  tolerably  correct  conclusions  in  regard  to  the  most  fatal  age  in 
different  climates,  by  a  knowledge  of  the  diseases  most  common  to  them. 

Thus  it  would  be  fair  to  infer,  that  if  the  diseases  which  have  been 


UPON    MORTALITY. 


181 


mentioned  as  having  most  prevalence  at  the  north  or  the  south,  as  the  case 
may  be,  really  do  prevail  in  either  latitude  to  the  extent  which  has  been 
indicated,  then  the  ratio  of  the  population  in  either  section,  at  particular 
ages,  will  indicate  their  presence  or  absence. 

With  the  view  to  develope  this  proposition,  a  table  giving  the  per 
cent,  of  the  several  ages  of  the  white  population  of  each  of  the  States  to  the 
total  population  of  these  States,  as  deduced  from  the  census  of  1850,  is 
introduced : — 


o 

rs 

§ 

8 

• 

i 

a 

f 

g 

S 

O 

8 

S 

S 

STATES  AND  TERRITORIES. 

• 
•a 

KJ 

0 

3 

2 

0 

3 

2 

5 

2 

O 

2 

2 

o 
*J 

S 

JA 

a 
p 

•* 

O 

T-t 

tQ 

§ 

8 

§ 

S 

S 

S 

S 

o 
ci 

g 

a 

Alabama  

2.86 

13.88 

15.87 

13.88 

11.67 

16.90 

10.77 

6.96 

4.15 

1.96 

.80 

.23 

.04 

.01 

.02 

Arkansas  

3.37 

15.03 

16.27 

14.25 

11.13 

17.53 

10.77 

6.51 

3.22 

1.36 

.43 

.09 

.01 

.01 

.02 

t  •>') 

1.77 

2.28 

2.13 

5.94 

50.60 

24.50;  8-7? 

2.41 

.60 

.09 

.03 

.01 

.73 

Columbia,  District  of.  .  . 

2.63 

10.66 

12.96 

11.57 

10.67 

19.70 

13.91 

8.65 

5.41 

2.64 

.90 

.28 

.03 

.04 

Connecticut  

2.07 

8.84 

10.56 

10.44 

10.47 

19.36 

13.59    9.94 

6.96 

4.51 

2.33 

.78 

.08 

.07 

Delaware  

2.74 

11.68 

13.94 

12.54 

10.92 

17.83 

12.77    8.51 

4.94 

2.65 

1.14 

.26 

.03 

.05 

Florida  

2.75 

13.78 

15.80 

12.48 

10.06 

18.02 

12.511  7.39 

4.40 

1.95 

.66 

.16 

.03 

.01 

Georgia  

2.91 

14.10 

16.06 

13.95 

11.24 

16.95 

10.28    6.93 

4.03 

2.25 

.92 

.30 

.06 

.01 

.02 

Illinois  

3.14 

13.57 

15.35 

13.34 

10.96 

17.74 

12.11    7.34 

4.00 

1.70 

.54 

.11 

.01 

.09 

Indiana  

3.27 

13.70 

15.96 

13.58 

11.33 

17.11 

10.98!  6.88 

4.30 

1.97 

.69 

.17 

.03 

.03 

Iowa  

3.18 

14.67 

16.13 

13.19 

10.47 

16.86 

12.54;  7.17 

3.72 

1.51 

.43 

.09 

.01 

.  .  .  . 

.03 

Kentucky  

3.10 

13.47 

15.36 

13.27 

11.15 

17.62 

11.03,  7.09 

4.22 

2.30 

1.00 

.81 

.05 

.01 

.02 

2.70 

11.86 

12.97 

hi.  (il 

9.05 

21.65 

16.64    8.36 

3.64 

1.46 

.47 

.11 

.02 

.01 

.12 

Maine  

2.40 

10.60 

12.77 

12.31 

11.50 

17.14 

11.95    9.15 

6.03 

3.66 

1.80 

.59 

.06 

.14 

Maryland  

2.88 

11.57 

13.06 

11.94 

10.34 

18.74 

13.44    8.65 

5.13 

2.76 

1.15 

.30 

.04 

... 

Massachusetts  

2.33 

9.13 

10.34 

9.86 

10.65 

21.23 

14.46    9.67 

i.or, 

3.71 

1.81 

.58 

.06 

.12 

Michigan  

2.74 

12.35 

14.99 

12.54 

10.75 

17.38 

12.95 

8.66 

4.57 

2.17 

.71 

.14 

.02 

.  ..  . 

.03 

Mississippi  

2.93 

14.45 

16.20 

13.93 

10.82 

17.18 

11.26 

6.82 

3.86 

1.72 

.62 

.15 

.02 

.05 

Missouri  

3.31 

13.61 

16.37 

13.39 

10.90 

18.28 

12.12    7.06 

3.73 

1.59 

.50 

.12 

.01 

.02 

New  Hampshire  

1  .(12 

8.48 

10.78 

10.79 

11.26 

18.00 

12.5310.17 

7.46 

4.83 

2.67 

.96 

.13 

.02 

New  Jersey  

2.76 

11.20 

13.04 

11.84 

10.76 

18.33 

12.68 

8.71 

5.55 

3.21 

1.41 

.44 

.04 

.... 

.03 

New  York  

2.47 

10.58 

12.21 

11.07 

10.78 

20.26 

13.58 

8.96 

5.39 

2.95 

1.29 

.38 

.04 

.05 

North  Carolina  

2.87 

12.62 

14.50 

13.25 

11.20 

17.30 

11.05 

7.64 

4.96 

2.82 

1.31 

.40 

.06 

.01 

.02 

Ohio  

2.87 

12.80 

14.72 

12.88 

11.16 

17.76 

11.64 

7.69 

1.55 

2.69 

1.02 

.26 

.03 

.03 

Pennsylvania  

2.79 

12.19 

13.80 

12.04 

10.68 

18.43 

12.27 

8.28 

5.07 

2.84 

1.20 

.33 

.03 

•  •  •  • 

.05 

Rhode  Island  

2.46 

9.58 

10.56 

10.25 

10.43 

20.74 

14.27 

9.48 

6.06 

3.76 

1.78 

.56 

.06 

.01 

South  Carolina  

2.35 

12.77 

14.78 

13.46 

11.02 

17.23 

11.22 

7.71 

I.9.- 

2.72 

1.23 

.41 

.08 

.01 

.03 

Tennessee  

3.03 

13.69 

15.71 

15.04 

11.75 

17.00 

10.21 

6.79 

4.12 

2222 

1.03 

.82 

.05 

.01 

.03 

Texas  

3.09 

14.13 

15.34 

12.86 

10.33 

18.67 

12.64 

7.84 

3.  62 

1.36 

.39 

.09 

.01 

.01 

.12 

Vermont  

2.1Q 

9.89 

12.15 

11.52 

10.93 

16.95 

12.45 

9.92 

6.72 

1.26 

2.26 

.76 

.08 

.  .  .  . 

.01 

Virginia  

2.r,:, 

12.56 

14.56 

13.12 

10.91 

17.33 

11.33 

7.92 

").C2 

2.84 

1.28 

.89 

.06 

.01 

.03 

Wisconsin  

3.41 

13.42 

13.85 

11.14 

9.43 

19.13 

14.67 

8.13 

4.33 

1.82 

.  ;»  • 

.10 

.01 

.06 

{Minnesota  

2.78 

19.44 

11.91 

9.29 

7.55 

28.44 

16.08 

7.00 

3.01 

1.03 

.33 

.08 

.03 

New  Mexico  .  . 

2.00 

12.30 

14.18 

11.42 

11.41 

20.47 

11.77 

7.13 

4.67 

2.76 

.93 

.52 

.14 

'.'07 

.23 

Oregon  

2.37 

13.27 

14.07 

10.77 

9.18 

24.28 

14.48 

6.65 

3.26 

1.13 

.16 

.02 

.01 

.50 

Utah  

3.81 

15.30 

12.04 

12.07 

11.70 

19.02 

12.00 

8.09 

3.75 

1.71 

.47 

.04 

.... 

Total  

2.75 

12.06 

13.83 

12.28 

lO.S'.t 

18.55 

12.36 

8.13 

4.90 

2.67 

1.15 

.34 

.04 

.... 

.05 

182  EFFECT    OF    LOCALITY    UPON    MORTALITY. 

From  this  table  it  would  appear  that,  as  a  general  rule,  the  per  cent, 
in  the  earlier  years  of  life,  to  the  whole  population,  is  greater  in  the  south 
ern  than  in  the  northern  States ;  that  this  difference  disappears  in  middle 
life,  from  20  to  50,  when,  unless  affected  by  migration,  the  proportions 
become  about  the  same  in  both  latitudes,  and  that  from  this  period  the  per 
cent,  is  steadily  in  favor  of  a  northern  climate  until  the  last,  when  it  returns 
again  to  the  south.  New  Hampshire,  which  exhibits  a  smaller  percentage 
of  population  in  the  earlier  years,  shows  a  largely  increased  one  in  the 
declining  period  of  life. 

This  is,  doubtless,  in  part  due  to  the  emigration  which  has  for  years 
been  at  work  in  draining  the  State  of  its  more  youthful  population,  while 
it  has  left  a  large  proportion  of  the  aged  at  home ;  but  the  universality  of  the 
law  requires  some  more  general  and  effective  means  than  emigration  to 
account  for  its  action,  and  this  is  doubtless  to  be  found  in  the  relative  preva 
lence  in  different  latitudes  or  states  of  one  or  the  other  of  the  diseases 
through  which  the  flood  of  humanity  flows  to  its  destined  goal. 


AGE    AT   DEATIF.  183 


'  I  ii  11  A  K  V 

UNIVKKSITY    OF 

CALIFORNIA 

==  .  X 


CHAPTER  XV. 

AGE     AT     DEATH. 

One  of  the  most  valuable  elements  connected  with  mortality  returns, 
is  a  correct  enumeration  of  the  ages  at  which  death  takes  place,  for,  as  it  is 
possible  by  a  knowledge  of  the  diseases  which  usually  prevail  in  a  parti 
cular  locality  to  determine  with  considerable  certainty  the  ages  upon  which 
these  diseases  fall,  so  it  is  likewise  possible,  with  the  age  at  death,  conjoined 
to  those  of  the  living,  to  estimate  the  comparative  healthfulness  of  different 
places,  and  the  probable  diseases  which  prevail,  and  consequent  value  of 
human  life  within  them. 

It  has  already  been  seen,  that  the  relative  proportion  of  persons  of  a 
given  age,  to  the  whole  population,  differed  very  materially  in  different 
climates,  and  it  has  been  inferred  that  the  ages  at  death  would  correspond 
ingly  differ.  This  would  probably  be  true  if  the  population  was  stationary  ; 
but  as  it  is  affected  by  migration,  the  proportions  cannot  always  be 
depended  on,  as  many  elements  besides  mortality  conjoin  to  disturb  these 
relations. 

The  first  prominent  feature  that  arrests  the  attention  in  an  examination 
of  this  subject,  is  the  great  mortality  that  prevails  among  the  young. 


184  INFANTILE    MORTALITY. 

In  all  countries,  and  under  all  circumstances,  in  the  same  country, 
death  makes  its  heaviest  demand  upon  the  infantile  portion  of  the  popula 
tion  ;  but  although  the  demand  is  always  greater  upon  this  age  than  upon 
any  other,  yet  surrounding  circumstances  have  much  to  do  in  rendering  it 
comparatively  moderate  or  excessive. 

Between  the  pure  air  of  the  country  and  the  more  confined  atmos 
phere  of  town,  or  between  the  healthy  portions  of  town,  inhabited  by  the 
more  opulent,  and  the  confined  and  filthy  courts  in  which  the  poor  congre 
gate,  the  differences  are  wide  and  startling. 

In  regard  to  this  particular  period  of  life,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the 
mortality  returns  of  the  census  are  not  what  they  might  be  desired,  and 
probably  very  largely  fall  short  of  the  mortality.  A  reason  for  their  want 
of  accuracy  in  this  report  is  easily  found  in  the  facility  with  which  the 
deaths  of  young  children  escape  recollection,  while  those  among  older 
persons  are  remembered.  Hence,  when  a  record  of  them  is  required,  it 
might  easily  happen  that  those  who  were  competent  to  furnish  information 
were  negligent  without  meaning  to  be  so. 

The  larger  part  of  the  returns  would  seem  to  bear  out  the  inference 
already  drawn  from  the  comparative  rates  of  mortality  among  the  young, 
manifested  by  the  Massachusetts  returns,  and  those  of  Charleston  and 
New  Orleans.  From  some,  however,  a  different  conclusion  might  be  drawn ; 
and  as  it  has  happened  in  more  than  one  instance  that  the  returns  of  two 
neighboring  States,  influenced  apparently  by  the  same  causes,  and  subject 
to  the  same  laws,  yielded  an  entirely  different  result,  it  has  been  deemed 
most  prudent  to  leave  their  guidance  entirely,  while  investigating  the  facts 
connected  with  the  mortality  of  infants,  and  the  influence  of  locality  upon 
it,  and  trust  to  those  more  scanty,  but  more  reliable,  records  which  the 
States  in  a  few  instances,  and  the  populous  cities  in  many,  have  placed 
within  reach. 


IN    TOWN   AND   COUNTY.  185 

It  is  true,  that  these  latter  returns  are  confined  exclusively  to  that 
phase  of  life  which  developes  itself  in  aggregate  numbers,  and  as  the  pro 
portions  between  city  and  country  mortality  are  quite  at  variance  with  each 
other,  the  same  reasoning  cannot  be  applied  to  both.  The  State  returns 
are  not  numerous,  and  the  mortuary  records  of  the  census  in  their  applica 
tion  to  infantile  life  are  abandoned  with  greater  regret,  because  they  would, 
i  f  reliable,  have  furnished  most  important  data  by  which  to  elucidate  the 
laws  which  regulate  the  infantile  mortality  of  those  rural  districts  in  close 
proximity  with  the  towns  which  have  kept  for  a  scries  of  years  bills  of 
mortality. 

In  some  portions  of  the  country  this  infantile  mortality  is  rather 
increasing  than  diminishing,  and  presents  figures  which  arc  certainly  large. 
Mr.  Shattuck  found  that  the  infantile  mortality  of  Massachusetts  had 
increased  in  four  years,  from  1757  to  1762,  or  over  G  per  cent,  and  that 
the  deaths  of  children  under  one  year,  amounted  to  17.62  per  cent,  of  the 
whole.* 

Dr.  Curtis  shows  that  49.81  per  cent,  of  all  those  who  died  in  the 
cities  of  Massachusetts  were  under  ten  years  while,  in  rural  districts  41.11 
per  cent,  of  the  deaths  were  under  ten.  "  This,"  he  properly  remarks,  "  is 
a  high  rate  to  be  sustained  by  persons  who  have  not  attained  the  termina 
tion  of  the  tenth  year  of  existence,  and,  so  far  as  we  have  statistics,  speaks 
more  unfavorably  for  the  cities  than  the  rest  of  the  State,  "f 

In  Charleston,  the  mortality  under  ten  years,  is  36.95  per  cent.,  and  in 
New  Orleans  it  declines  to  33.38  per  cent.  This  would  confirm  the  infer 
ence  that  a  rigorous  climate  was  unfavorable  to  the  tender  age  of  infancy 
and  early  youth,  and  that  a  warm  one  was  that  best  suited  to  their  condi 
tion.  Dr.  Do  Sassure  and  Dawson,  however,  in  presenting  a  table  of  the 


*  Shuttiick's  Letter  to  Secretory  of  State  of  Massachusetts,  p.  83. 
f  Eighth  Registration  Report,  p.  116. 


186  FARR    ON    THE 

deaths  which  have  occurred  in  Charleston,  from  1822  to  1848,  complain  that 
the  proportion  of  deaths  under  one  year  has  increased  from  15.59  to  17.32 
per  cent,,  or  about  the  same  as  that  of  Boston.  In  the  succeeding  years,  and 
especially  the  last  few,  the  diminution,  as  compared  with  Massachusetts, 
was  such  as  to  render  the  whole  mortality  occurring,  under  ten  years,  4.16 
below  that  of  the  whole  State  of  Massachusetts,  and  12.86  per  cent,  below 
that  of  Boston. 

From  the  Charleston  mortality,  which  is  inserted,  it  will  be  seen  that 
the  infantile  mortality  has  been  subject  to  great  fluctuations,  averaging  from 
1822  to  1836,  15.59  per  cent,  falling  for  the  next  period,  from  1830  to 
1840,  to  13.09,  and  again  not  only  rising  to  its  former  standard,  but 
surpassing  it,  and  assuming  an  attitude  of  17.32  per  cent. 

The  proportion  of  this  mortality,  between  the  races,  is  as  follows : 

First  Period.        Second  Period.        Third  Period. 

White,         .  9.11  7.70  10.82 

Black,    .        .  .  21.07  17.24  21.64 

The  average  age  at  death  has  been  considered  so  good  a  test  for  the 
comparative  hcalthfulness  of  a  country,  that  the  States  of  Massachusetts, 
Kentucky  and  Rhode  Island  have  taken  good  care,  in  tabulating  the  returns 
made  under  their  respective  registration  acts,  to  ascertain  and  record  the 
average  age  at  death  with  considerable  precision.  The  process  of  ascer 
taining  the  average  age  at  death  is  simple,  and  consists  in  adding  up  the 
sum  of  the  ages  of  those  who  die,  and  dividing  the  aggregate  among  the 
number  of  deaths. 

This  means  of  determining  the  relative  health  of  a  given  population 
has  been  in  use  for  a  long  period,  and  was  in  fact  employed  before  any  enu 
merations  were  made  of  the  living.  It  is  liable  to  very  material  errors, 
Avhen  applied  to  a  population  as  fluctuating  as  that  of  the  United  States, 
which  have  been  ably  pointed  out  by  Mr.  Farr  :— 


AVERAGE  AUE  AT  DEATH.  187 

u  Take  a  street  (C)  in  a  town  where,  from  the  erection  of  new  fac 
tories,  or  from  any  new  field  of  labor  being  thrown  open,  a  considerable 
number  of  young  men  and  women  have  been  attracted  within  the  last  10 
or  15  years ;  there  is  a  demand  for  the  labor  of  children ;  marriages  take 
place  ;  nearly  all  the  young  couples  have  children,  two,  three,  or  four  in  a 
family.  Take  another  street  (D),  inhabited  by  artisans,  whose  business  and 
numbers  have  remained  nearly  stationary,  and  tradespeople  who  have  suc 
ceeded  to  old  shops  established  by  their  fathers  ; — suppose  the  salubrity  of 
the  two  streets,  and  the  rate  of  mortality  at  the  corresponding  ages,  the 
same, — it  is  evident  that  as  the  street  C  contains  no  old  people,  and  the 
mortality  in  the  first  two  or  three  years  is  always  relatively  high,  the  deaths 
registered  will  be  at  early  ages — the  mean  age  at  death  low  ;  while  in  the 
street  D,  the  deaths  will  many  of  them  be  at  old  ages,  and  the  mean  age  at 
death  relatively  high.  If  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  two  streets  died  in  one 
year,  the  mortality  would  be  the  same.  Yet  the  mean  age  at  death  would 
differ  in  the  same  ratio  as  the  mean  age  of  the  living.  The  same  results 
would  be  produced  by  the  death  of  (we-thirtieth  of  the  inhabitants  in  each 
street.  The  cases  which  have  been  put  will  enable  us  to  understand  such  a 
case  as  is  said  to  have  occurred  in  Leicester,  where  the  mean  age  at  death 
was  13 i  years  in  the  undrained  streets,  and  23j  in  the  drained  streets.  That 
the  real  mortality  was  higher  in  the  one  class  of  streets  than  in  the  other,  is 
probable ;  but  this  is  not  proved  by  the  method,  for  the  undrained  streets 
may  be  new  streets,  inhabited  by  young  people — a  part  of  the  8,  GOO  in 
46,000  not  born  in  Leicestershire ;  while  the  drained  streets  may  be  old 
streets  inhabited  by  the  old  inhabitants  of  the  towns.*  On  account  of  the 
system  of  compensation  which  it  involves,  the  method  of  comparing  the 
total  deaths  to  the  population  of  the  streets  gives  results  nearer  the  truth  ; 


*  I  find,  upon  turning  to  the  Census  Returns,  that  the  population  of  some  of  the  new  und  old  streets  in 
Leicester  differ  in  the  manner  described. 


188  FALLACIES  OF  THIS  METHOD 

but  no  one  acquainted  with  inquiries  of  the  kind  would  place  much  con 
fidence  in  any  other  method,  as  applied  to  particular  streets  or  small  dis 
tricts,  than  that  upon  which  the  Life  Table  is  founded — the  comparison  of 
the  numbers  living  with  the  numbers  born  and  dying  at  the  several  periods 
of  life.  In  the  Registrar-General's  Report,  the  mortality  is  only  given  for 
statistical  districts  of  an  average  population  of  50,000. 

"  The  mean  age  at  death  in  the  districts  of  the  metropolis  furnishes  a 
series  of  very  striking  illustrations  of  the  errors  of  the  method :  according 
to  which  Greemuicli  is  the  healthiest  district  in  the  metropolis ;  and  would 
be  placed  first  in  a  table  of  salubrity,  as  the  mean  age  at  death  is  36  years 
in  Greenwich,  and  only  31  in  Hackney,  31  in  St.  George,  Hanover-square. 
This  result  is  produced  by  the  accumulation  of  old  men  in  Greenwich  Hos 
pital,*  who,  of  course,  die  at  advanced  ages,  and  make  the  mean  age  at 
death  high.  Supposing  the  mortality  among  the  old  veterans  to  be  the 
same  as  the  mortality  of  the  general  population,  it  is  evident  that  the  living 
at  GO-70-80,  &c.,  would  be  increased  as  much  as  the  dying,  and  that  the 
method  of  comparing  the  deaths  with  the  living  would  give  true  results, 
ilotherhithe,  according  to  the  same  method,  is  healthier  than  Islington, 
Marylebone,  and  Paucras :  in  Whitechapel  the  mean  age  at  death  is  26 
years ;  it  is  placed  therefore  higher  than  St.  James's  district,  comprising  the 
lower  end  of  Regent-street,  and  higher  than  the  wealthy  City  of  London,  in 
in  which  the  mean  age  at  death  is  only  25  years ;  an  effect  to  be  ascribed 
partly  to  the  City  of  London  workhouse  for  old  people  at  Peckham,  which 
is  also  one  of  the  causes  why  the  mean  age  at  death  is  25  years  in  the  city, 
and  34  years  in  Cambcrwell.  The  'mean  age  at  death'  is  21  years  in  St. 
Saviour,  and  30  in  St.  Olavc.  That  these  results  are  absurd  must  be  evident 
to  all  who  are  acquainted  with  the  subject,"  f 


*  The  deaths  of  291  pensioners  were  registered  in  1841  ;  the  total  deaths  in  the  Greenwich  District  were 
2198. 

t  (Hh  Registrar-General's  Report,  .p.  575. 


ILLUSTRATED.  189 

There  is  probably  no  country  to  which  these  remarks  arc  more  appli 
cable  than  to  the  United  States.  It  is  asserted  by  Mr.  Farr  that  the  popula 
tion  in  England  is  so  much  affected  by  migration  as  seriously  to  interfere 
with  the  results  of  the  average  age  at  death,  or  the  mean  age  at  death, 
which  is  but  another  form  for  expressing  the  same  idea.  But  the  fluctu 
ations  of  population  in  England  are  trivial,  when  compared  to  those  that 
take  place  in  the  United  States.  Not  only  is  the  amount  of  immigration 
largely  in  advance  of  that  of  any  other  country,  whose  statistics  of  popula 
tion  are  known,  but  the  changes  of  the  native  inhabitants  from  place  to 
place  are  much  greater  than  those  of  any  other  people. 

The  restless  and  indomitable  spirit  which  is  characteristic  of  the  Ame 
rican  nation,  and  induces  them  to  court  hazard  or  risk,  either  of  life  or 
property,  apparently  for  the  sake  of  overcoming  it,  has  entirely  absorbed  all 
great  attachment  for  place  or  love  of  home.  The  associations  which 
gather  around  this  sacred  spot,  and  endear  it  to  the  hearts  of  the  people  of 
most  nations,  is  one  of  slight  tenure  in  the  breast  of  an  American.  It  is 
true  that  among  the  aged,  who  have  spent  a  long  life  upon  their  quiet  acres, 
in  the  deep  bosom  of  the  country,  this  feeling  is  still  extant,  and  occasion 
ally  one  of  their  more  adventurous  offspring,  who  has  gone  forth  in  the 
busy  world,  and  is  involved  in  its  cares  and  perplexities,  turns  a  lingering 
look  towards  the  old  homestead,  where  his  quietest  and  happiest  hours  have 
been  passed ;  but  this  feeling  is  but  momentary,  and  is  chased  away  the  next 
instant  by  some  one  of  the  many  schemes  that  take  possession  of  his  restless 
mind. 

Occasionally  one,  in  whose  breast  the  recollection  of  home  is  more  vivid 
than  is  usually  the  case,  returns  to  his  native  acres  and  strives  to  find  happi 
ness  in  maturer  years  in  the  contemplation  of  the  scenes  of  his  youth ;  but 
it  usually  happens  that  the  glad  spirit  which  enlivened  that  period,  and 
beautified  every  running  brook  or  shady  glen,  with  a  coloring  of  its  own,  has 


190  AVERAGE    AGE    AT    DEATH 

fled,  and  in  place  of  the  blithesome  boy,  the  care-worn  man  gazes  upon  the 
scenes  which  once  inspired  the  most  delightful  emotions  with  a  listless  eye 
and  languid  look,  and  wonders  how  his  youthful  fancy  could  have  been 
taken  captive  by  the  scenes  upon  which  he  now  coldly  looks,  with  but  little 
pleasure  and  much  pain.  A  visit  like  this  too  frequently  dispels  the  gay 
illusion  which  the  man  of  the  world  amid  his  many  cares  had  created  for 
himself,  and  he  returns  to  the  world  a  wiser  but  also  a  sadder  man  ;  and  if 
he  changes  his  place  of  residence,  it  is  to  some  one  further  removed  than 
ever  from  that  of  his  youth,  where  the  associations  which  he  forms  are 
those  of  the  moment. 

The  great  uncertainty  of  this  rule,  when  applied  to  such  a  population 
as  that  of  the  United  States,  is  still  further  illustrated  by  a  comparison  of 
the  average  age  at  death,  in  the  States  of  Massachusetts  and  Kentucky.  In 
the  former,  for  a  period  of  five  years,  ending  January  1st,  1854,  92,174 
deaths  are  recorded,  whose  average  age  was  26.93  years.  In  the  latter 
State  the  recorded  deaths,  in  1852,  amounted  to  12,058,  with  an  average 
age  of  20.55  years  for  the  white  population,  and  17.59  for  the  colored. 
During  the  year  1853,  9,105  occurred,  the  average  ages  of  which  were 
20.76  years  for  the  whites,  and  18.34  for  the  colored  deaths.  Thus — 

Massachusetts,  for  five  years,  average  age  at  death,     .     .  26.93  years. 

Kentucky,  for  1852,  white,  "  "  "  ...  20.55  " 

"  black,  "  "  "  ...  17.59  " 

"  for  1853,  white,  "  "  "  ...  20.76  " 

"  "  black,  "  "  "  ...  18.34  " 

These  facts  establish  pretty  clearly  the  proposition,  that  the  more 
youthful  a  country  or  population  is,  the  less  will  be  its  average  age  at 
death,  provided  the  proportion  of  females  assimilates  pretty  nearly  to  that 
of  the  males,  as  it  is  the  presence  and  death  of  the  infantile  part  of  the 
population  that  reduces  the  average  age  at  death.  In  California,  where  the 


IN    NORTHERN    AND   SOUTHERN    LATITUDES.  191 

female  portion  of  the  population  is  greatly  in  the  minority,  a  high  average 
age  at  death  might  be  expected ;  whereas  in  Indiana,  Iowa  or  Kentucky,  it 
would  probably  be  low,  for  it  is  to  be  taken  for  granted  that  in  each  of  the 
new  States  the  proportion  of  children  to  the  number  of  females  of  a  mar 
riageable  age  is  greater  than  in  the  older  ones. 

It  will  be  seen  that  those  populations  in  the  old  world  and  in  the  new, 
that  remain  in  the  most  perfect  state  of  repose,  losing  perhaps  their  younger 
members  by  emigration,  but  receiving  none  of  the  same  age  in  return, 
exhibit  the  highest  average  age  at  death.  This  is  evidenced  by  Geneva,  in 
Switzerland,  and  Concord,  in  New  Hampshire,  both  of  whose  populations 
are  remarkably  stationary.  Plympton,  in  Massachusetts,  is  another  evidence 
of  the  effect  of  an  aged  and  stationary  population  upon  the  average  age  at 
death. 

"  The  whole  number  of  deaths  in  Plymptom,  during  thirty  years,  from 
January,  1812,  to  January,  1842,  was  218  males,  226  females;  total,  443. 
The  average  age  of  all  the  deceased  persons,  was  40  years,  10  months,  and 
25  15-24  days.  The  average  age  of  the  males  was  39  years,  9  months,  and 
9  20-24  days.  The  average  age  of  the  females,  was  41  years,  11  months, 
and  28  8-24  days.  There  were  probably  as  many  people  in  Plympton,  at 
the  commencement  of  the  war  of  the  revolution,  as  there  are  now,  i.e.,  861."* 

These  illustrations  show  that  the  same  causes  which  produce  a  low 
average  age,  either  of  the  living  or  the  dead,  operate  alike  in  both  hemis 
pheres,  and  arc  the  peculiar  incidents  of  American  life.  That  a  large  per 
centage  of  infantile  mortality  will  not  only  depress  the  average  age  at 
death,  but  also  that  of  the  living,  is  readily  admitted ;  but  this  is  not  the  only 
cause  competent  to  produce  this  result,  nor  is  it  always  a  manifestation  of 
the  unhcalthiness  of  a  place,  and  certainly  none  of  its  want  of  prosperity, 
as  is  made  manifest  by  a  comparison  of  some  quiet  town  in  New  England, 
and  an  active  town  in  the  New  States. 


Report  of  Town  Clork. 


192 


AVERAGE   AGE   AT   DEATH 


The  annexed  table  exhibits  the  average  at  death  in  Boston,  New  York, 
Philadelphia  and  Charleston,  four  cities  in  different  degrees  of  latitude, 
situated  upon  the  Atlantic  seaboard,  and  of  an  age  corresponding  tolerably 
well  with  each  other  :— 

ALL  AGES.  UNDER  20.  OVER  20. 


PLACE  AND 

PERIOD. 

Number. 

Average 
Age. 

Number. 

Average 
Age. 

Number. 

Average 
Age. 

Charleston, 

1822  to  1830, 

)  Whites, 
V  Blacks, 
)  Both, 

3,447 
4,076 

7,523 

32.63 
28.66 
30.59 

963 

1,950 
2,913 

4.62 
3.93 
4.16 

2,484 
2,126 
4,610 

43.55 
51.33 

47.28 

1831  to  1840, 

1 

Whites, 
Blacks, 
Both, 

3,366 
4,297 
7,663 

32.65 

30,74 
31.05 

866 
1,957 
2,823 

5.14 

4.70 
4.88 

2,500 
2,340 
4,840 

43.26 
48.24 
45.11 

1841  to  1848, 

1 

Whites, 
Blacks, 
Both, 

1,866 
2,847 
4,733 

33.41 

28.35 
30.39 

614 
1,416 
2,030 

3.68 
3.90 
3.83 

1,272 
1,431 
2,703 

47.74 
52.56 
50.29 

Boston, 

1821  to  1830, 

Both, 

10,731 

25.88 

4,913 

3.38 

5,817 

44.88 

1831  to  1840, 

u 

16,314 

22.72 

8,565 

3.33 

7,749 

44.15 

1841  to  1845, 

a 

10,422 

21.43 

5,875 

3.31 

4,547 

44.86 

New  York, 

1821  to  1830, 

n 

42,817 

24.36 

20,018 

3.15 

22,709 

43.14 

1831  to  1840, 

a 

74,819 

19.46 

40,728 

2.95 

34,091 

39.18 

1841  to  1843, 

it 

29,939 

19.69 

14,127 

2.86 

10,812 

41.68 

Philadelphia, 

1821  to  1830, 

u 

36,614 

25.53 

17,794 

3.22 

19,820 

45.57 

1831  to  1840, 

a 

49,678 

22.64 

26,812 

2.91 

22,866 

45.78 

1841  to  1844, 

<( 

21,356 

22.01 

12,088 

3.02 

9,268 

46.79 

An  examination  of  this  table  leaves  no  room  to  doubt  that  New  York 
and  Philadelphia  were  depressed  to  this  low  standard,  by  the  great  mortality 
which  prevailed  in  each  among  the  infantile  portion  of  the  population.  It 
has  already  been  seen  that  the  infantile  period  of  life  was  more  kindly  dealt 
with  in  the  warm  climate  of  the  southern  States,  and  it  might  reasonably  be 
anticipated  that  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  inhabitants  living  of  that 
age,  the  deaths  would  be  fewer  at  the  south  than  at  the  north. 


GENERAL    OBSERVATIONS.  103 

1. 1.  B  It  A  It  \     > 

UNI V KkS  IT  Y   OF 

CALIFORNIA. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 
/ 

GENERAL    OBSERVATIONS. 

An  attempt  has  been  made  in  the  preceding  pages  to  take  a  compre 
hensive  survey  of  the  vital  condition  of  the  population  of  the  whole  Union, 
and,  so  far  as  the  facts  permitted,  to  pourtray  and  classify  the  peculiarities 
of  each  section.  The  materials  used  in  the  prosecution  of  this  undertaking, 
were  not  all  that  might  be  desired,  but  such  as  actually  existed,  and  could 
be  commanded.  In  many  instances  they  have  been  sufficient  not  only  to 
lead  to  suggestions,  but  also  to  substantiate  them ;  in  others,  they  have 
only  served  the  purpose  of  exciting  the  mind  to  the  adoption  of  an  infer 
ence,  without  supplying  the  materials  necessary  to  prosecute  it  to  a  final 
conclusion. 

Some  of  the  most  apparently  important  deductions,  drawn  from  scanty 
and  insufficient  data,  arc  in  this  position,  and  await  the  accumulation  of  a 
sufficient  number  of  facts  to  prove  their  correctness,  or  show  their  improba 
bility.  In  no  part  of  the  country  has  the  registration  of  births,  deaths  and 
marriages  been  conducted  with  sufficient  care,  and  arranged  with  sufficient 
precision,  to  ensure  such  results  as  might  be  desired,  with  the  single 
exception  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  whose  labors  in  this  department 
of  enquiry  are  above  all  praise. 
24 


1!)4  EFFECT    OF    LOCALITY" 

Climate  and  latitude  are  seen  to  exercise  an  influence  in  the  production 
of  particular  diseases,  and  in  the  relative  number  of  deaths  at  particular 
ages,  too  evident  not  to  be  admitted,  and  too  important  to  be  overlooked. 
"  The  influence  of  climate,"  says  Dr.  Johnson,  in  his  work  on  Italian 
climate,  "  not  only  on  the  complexion,  but  on  the  features  and  the  whole 
organization  of  man,  as  well  as  of  animals  and  vegetables,  is  now  unques 
tioned.  The  inhabitants  of  Italy,  notwithstanding  the  unlimited  admixture 
of  Gothic,  Grecian,  African  and  Asiatic  blood,  are  almost  as  uniformity  natu 
ralized  in  respect  to  color,  features,  and  even  moral  character,  as  the  inha 
bitants  of  Spain,  Greece,  Egypt,  Hindostan,  or  China.  It  is  impossible  to 
attribute  this  natural  stamp,  or  impress  entirely,  or  even  principally  to  race 
or  hereditary  descent,  in  any  country,  and  least  of  all  in  Italy,  which,  from 
the  circumstance  of  its  universal  domination  at  one  time,  and  complete 
subjugation  at  another,  became  an  immense  human  menagerie,  where 
specimens,  nay,  colonies  of  every  people  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  were 
commixed  and  blended  together  ad  infmitum.  Climate,  then,  assisted  by 
some  other  physical  causes,  and  many  of  a  moral  nature,  has  effected  as 
homogeneous  a  people,  mental  and  corporeal,  in  Italy,  as  in  most  other 
countries."* 

Dr.  Armstrong,  Deputy-Inspector  of  Hospitals  and  Fleets,  in  the  Eng 
lish  service,  says:  "So  powerful  arc  the  effects  of  external  circumstances, 
that  some  of  the  most  striking  changes  have  been  produced  in  the  human 
constitution  in  the  course  of  a  few  generations,  and  become  permanent.  In 
the  West  India  Islands  the  white  race,  descended  from  the  earlier  European 
settlers,  as  well  as  those  brought  from  England,  in  early  life,  are  tall  and 
well  proportioned,  with  great  freedom  in  the  joints.  In  general,  however, 
the  chest  is  less  capacious,  and  the  muscles  less  strongly  marked.  Pecu- 

Johnson  on  Change  of  Air,  p.  225. 


UPON    MORTALITY.  195 

liaritics  arc  also  observed  in  the  greater  prominence  of  the  bones  of  the 
checks  and  depth  of  the  orbits ;  the  complexion  is  paler,  and  the  skin  cooler. 
In  New  South  Wales,  the  descendants  of  the  first  settlers  exhibit  the  same 
peculiarities,  although  in  a  less  degree. 

"The  influence  of  warm  climates  is  apparent  after  a  few  years'  residence 
within  the  tropics.  Europeans  lose  their  sanguineous  complexions  and  ac 
quire  the  power  of  resisting  heat  better  than  the  new  comer.  This  power 
of  accommodation  to  circumstances  arises  from  a  corresponding  change  in 
the  functions  of  life,  and  which  is  usually  attributed  to  the  individual  having 
undergone  the  process  of  seasoning,  a  process  of  which  the  most  vague 
opinions  seem  to  be  entertained.  Even  within  the  limited  extent  of  our 
own  country  (England)  we  observe  the  influence  of  local  situation  on 
comparing  the  natives  of  mountainous  districts  with  those  of  the  low 
country."* 

It  is  stated  by  Sir  James  McGregor,  Director  General  of  the  Army 
Medical  Board,  that  so  great  is  the  influence  of  climate  and  surrounding 
circumstances  upon  the  physical  character  of  the  human  race,  that  a  corps 
levied  from  the  agricultural  districts  of  Wales,  or  the  northern  counties  of 
England,  will  last  much  longer  and  endure  more  hardship  than  one  pro 
cured  from  the  materials  which  abound  in  the  manufacturing  towns,  as 
Birmingham  and  Manchester.  The  effect  upon  the  physique  by  residence 
in  manufacturing  towns  is  particularly  striking.  Thus,  out  of  613  men 
enlisted  in  Birmingham  and  its  neighborhood,  but  238  were  approved  as 
fit  for  service.  This  permanent  deterioration  is  still  further  illustrated  by 
the  disqualification  for  those  posts  requiring  a  certain  standard  of  SLZC  and 
strength,  produced  by  long  residence  in  the  more  crowded  parts  of  London. 
It  is  said,  that  of  the  men  from  Spitalficlds,  and  other  crowded  districts  in 

*  Armstrong  on  Climate,  p.  8. 


19G  EFFECT    OF    LOCALITY 

London,  who  apply  for  situations  in  the  police  force,  two  out  of  three  are 
rejected,  as  physically  unfit.  In  further  illustration  of  this  point,  "  it  is 
observed,  that  in  some  of  the  worst  conditioned  of  the  town  districts,  that 
the  positive  number  of  natives  of  the  aboriginal  stock  continually  diminishes, 
and  that  the  vacancy,  as  well  as  the  increase,  is  made  up  by  emigration  from 
healthier  districts."* 

In  regard  to  the  influence  of  climate  in  our  own  country,  Dr.  Prichard 
remarks: — "The  tall,  lank,  gaunt,  and  otherwise  remarkable  figures  of  the 
Virginians,  and  men  of  Carolina,  are  strikingly  different  from  the  short, 
plump,  round-faced  farmers  of  the  midland  counties  in  England.  The  race 
is  originally  the  same,  and  the  deviation  in  it  must  be  attributed  to  the  in 
fluence  of  the  circumstances,  whatever  they  may  be,  which  are  connected 
with  local  situation.  ""I* 

All  of  these  authorities,  which  might  be  greatly  multiplied,  are  empha 
tic  in  their  testimony  as  to  the  influence  of  climate  over  the  human  organi 
zation  in  a  state  of  health,  predisposing  it  to  disease  under  certain  defined 
circumstances,  and  preserving  it  from  them  under  others.  The  facts  col 
lected  in  the  preceding  pages  demonstrate  the  extent  of  this  influence  in 
the  wide  range  of  latitude  and  climate  embraced  within  the  limits  of  the 
United  States,  "  which  is,"  says  Maltebrun,  "  so  inconstant  and  variable, 
that  it  passes  rapidly  from  the  frosts  of  Norway  to  the  scorching  heats  of 
Africa,  and  from  the  humidity  of  Holland  to  the  drought  of  Castile." 

The  effect  of  climate  is  greatly  modified  by  long  residence,  by  which 
means  the  system  undergoes  a  change  fiting  it  to  withstand  the  deleterious 
influences  that  surround  it.  This  process  is  termed  acclimation,  and  is  espe 
cially  marked  in  its  effect  upon  the  constitution  of  those  who  change  their 

*  Report  of  Poor  Law  Commissioner,  1842. 
f  Researches  into  the  Physical  History  of  Man,  by  James  Cowles  Prichard,  vol.  '2,  p.  563. 


UPON    MOHTAL1TY.  l'J7 

residence  from  a  cold  to  a  warm  latitude.  "  Habit,"  remarks  Dr.  La 
Roche,  "  seems  to  possess  the  power  of  modifying  the  system  to  so  great 
an  extent,  and  so  permanent  a  degree,  as  to  justify  those  who  hold  it  in  the 
light  of  a  second  nature.  In  virtue  of  the  influence  it  exercises,  and  the 
peculiar  organic  changes  resulting  from  long  exposure  to  the  sensible  and 
insensible  qualities  of  the  atmosphere,  or  to  the  extraneous  materials  by 
which  the  atmosphere  may  be  contaminated,  man  enjoys  the  faculty  to 
which  I  have  alluded,  of  living  under  climatic  influences  of  the  most  diver 
sified  characters.  He  resists  the  inclemencies  of  the  elements,  the  insalu 
brity  of  the  seasons,  the  extremes  of  temperature,  as  well  as  the  action  of 
malarial  and  other  exhalations.  With  time,  the  native  of  the  north  acquires 
the  privilege  of  supporting  with  impunity  the  scorching  rays  of  a  tropical 
sun,  though  the  result  is  not  obtained  without  inconvenience,  suffering,  and 
even  danger,  and  without,  in  the  greater  number  of  instances,  subjecting 
the  individual  to  the  ordeal  of  disease.  Not  so  easy  is  it  to  become  habitu 
ated  to  the  baneful  action  of  those  modifiers — such  as  malarial  exhalations— 
Avhich  exercise  their  agency  on  the  principles  of  vitality.* 

Those  who  are  born  in  the  neighborhood  of  marshes,  are  less  affected 
by  the  miasm  arising  from  them,  than  new  comers,  who  are  almost  certain 
to  be  attacked  by  malarial  diseases.  The  American  bottom,  which  is  situ 
ated  in  Illinois,  contiguous  to  the  Mississippi  river,  and  extends  backs  to  the 
bluffs,  some  few  miles  inland,  presents  one  of  the  most  extensive  marshy 
districts  in  the  United  States.  The  inhabitants  of  this  fertile  but  miasmatic 
district,  although  possessed  of  a  yellow  and  sallow  hue,  acquire  the  power 
of  resisting  the  miasmatic  influence  that  constantly  environs  them  to  a  cer 
tain  extent,  while  an  exposure  for  a  single  night  to  those  unaccustomed  to 
the  miasm  is  almost  certain  to  be  followed  by  an  attack  of  fever.  It  is  so 

*  La  Roche  on  Yellow  Fever,  vol.  2,  p.  20. 


198  ACCLIMATION    TO 

customary  for  strangers  visiting  the  more  southern  parts  of  the  valley  of  the 
Mississippi  to  be  attacked  by  fever,  that  Dr.  Former  says,  "  the  term  accli 
mation  is  perfectly  well  known  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  lower  valley,  and 
indicates  that  persons  coming  from  a  northern  climate  and  settling  there, 
arc  very  liable  to  have  attacks  of  fever  during  the  first  two  or  three  years 
of  their  residence,  but  afterwards  become  quite  exempt."  * 

Drs.  Nott,  Dickson,  and  many  other  southern  medical  men  who  are  in 
the  habit  of  observing  the  effect  of  long-continued  residence  in  malarial 
districts,  arc  of  the  opinion  that  the  system  is  rather  predisposed  to  an 
attack  of  autumnal  fever,  by  having  previously  suffered  rather  than  pro 
tected  by  its  occurrence.  In  the  malarial  districts  of  Maryland,  the  writer 
has  had  occasion  to  observe  frequent  attacks  in  the  same  individual,  and 
has  known  one  instance  in  which  a  gentleman  has  suffered  from  sixteen 
attacks  of  remittent  fever  in  seventeen  consecutive  seasons. 

These  observations,  although  applicable  with  greater  force  to  southern 
than  northern  latitudes,  are  nevertheless  general  in  their  application,  and  ex 
tend  to  all  varieties  of  climate  and  many  modifications  of  disease.  The 
same  laws  which  modify  the  temperature,  arrange  the  constituents  of  the 
soil,  and  bestow  upon  the  inanimate  objects  of  creation  their  peculiar 
and  marked  characteristics,  also  exercise  their  control  over  the  human 
system,  bestowing  upon  it  peculiarity  of  color,  shape,  and  powers  of  en 
durance,  and  so  modify  it  as  to  fit  it  for  the  particular  situation  in  which  it 
is  placed. 

The  most  fatal  disease,  however,  to  those  who  are  unacclimated,  is  yel 
low  fever,  which  prevails  within  the  tropics  and  in  the  southern  cities  of  the 
United  States.  Dr.  Barton,  in  his  excellent  report  on  the  yellow  fever,  as  it 
occurred  in  New  Orleans,  has  a  table  showing  "  the  life  cost  of  acclimation; 

*  Fanner's  Southern  Medical  Reports,  p.  32. 


YELLOW    FEVER.  199 

or  liabilities  to  yellow  fever  from  nativity,  as  exhibited  by  the  epidemic  of 
1853  :"- 

Estimated  Estimated        Ratio  per  1000 

NATIVITIES — STATE  AND  COUNTRY.  population  mortality  of  the 

in  1853.  from  Fever.          Population. 

New  Orleans,  A[.  nn)  (140  „  KQ 

State  of  Louisiana,          ....  t6'OC  {    25 

Arkansas,    Mississippi,    Alabama,    Georgia,)     n-,** 
South  Carolina,   '  .  .        \     3'176 

North    Carolina,    Virginia,   Maryland,   Ten-)     A  not  tro  OA  no 

nessee,  Kentucky,        .  (     4>JS 

New  York,  Vermont,  Massachusetts,  Maine,  ) 

Ehode  Island,    Connecticut,  New  Jersey,  V  10,751  353  32.83 

Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  ) 

Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Missouri,            .        .       2,030  92  44.23 

British  America, 381  20  50.24 


Totals, 66,946  825  12.32 

"West  Indies,  South  America,  Mexico,  .        .  1,790  11  6.14 

Great  Britain, 4,598  240  52.19 

Ireland, 26,611  3,569  204.97 

Denmark,  Sweden,  Russia,      ....  588  96  163.26 

Prussia,  Germany, 17,718  2,339  132.01 

Holland,  Belgium, 152  50  328.94 

Austria,  Switzerland,           ....  797  176  220.08 

France, 9,907  480  48.13 

Spain,  Italy, 2,217  61  22.06 


Totals  .  .  62,448  7,011  111.91 

It  is  supposed  by  many  that  a  continued  residence  in  a  city  where 
yellow  fever  is  of  frequent  occurrence,  as  in  Charleston,  Savannah,  Mobile, 
or  New  Orleans,  furnishes  an  entire  immunity  against  its  attack.  It  is 
extremely  doubtful,  however,  whether  any  permanent  immunity  can  be 
obtained  which  is  not  based  upon  an  absolute  attack  of  the  disease.  Dr. 
Stone,  of  Charity  Hospital,  Now  Orleans,  whose  experience  in  yellow  fever  is 


200  DR.    lURTON    ON 

large,  is  clearly  of  the  opinion  that  the  disease  must  be  once  taken  in  order 
to  afford  future  protection.  In  a  large  practice,  he  has  known  no  one  to 
escape,  although  he  has  frequently  observed  attacks  in  young  children,  and 
even  infants,  so  slight  as  scarcely  to  attract  the  notice  of  their  nurses  or 
parents.  Dr.  Barton  assorts,  "  that  perfect  acclimation  is  only  to  be  derived 
from  once  having  liad  the  disease."  "  One  of  the  most  extraordinary 
features  of  this  epidemic,"  remarks  Dr.  Fenner,  in  speaking  of  the  scourge 
of  yellow  fever,  in  1853,  "is  presented  in  the  fact,  that  the  natives  of  the 
city,  both  white  and  colored,  have  suffered  severely,  and  many  of  them  have 
died."  The  same  was  observed  at  Charleston,  Savannah  and  Mobile,  as  well 
as  those  towns  on  the  Mississippi  river  which  were  visited  by  the  disease. 
Nor  is  the  immunity  extended  to  those  rural  districts  where  it  docs  not 
prevail.  Dr.  Dowler,  in  speaking  of  the  disease  as  it  prevails  at  Charleston, 
says :  "  Those  who  live  in  the  higher  parts  of  the  State,  at  a  distance  of 
two  or  three  hundred  miles,  and  who  come  to  Charleston  during  the  four 
months  in  which  the  yellow  fever  commonly  prevails,  are  as  liable  to  be 
attacked  by  it  as  strangers;  and,  therefore,  all  intercourse  between  the 
country  and  city  is  suspended  for  one-third  of  the  year,  excepting  that  of  a 
few  white  persons,  who,  from  necessity,  go  to  the  latter,  always  taking  care, 
however,  not  to  sleep  there." 

The  table  already  introduced,  showing  the  relative  mortality  in  New 
Orleans,  in  each  1,000,  of  the  inhabitants  of  different  countries,  and  dif 
ferent  sections  of  this  country,  exhibits  in  a  very  remarkable  manner  the 
influence  exerted  by  long  residence  in  a  warm  climate.  Thus  among  the 
strangers  from  the  northern  portions  of  the  United  States,  a  larger  number 
were  attacked  than  among  those  from  the  lower  latitudes  of  Kentucky,  Vir 
ginia,  Tennessee,  and  North  Carolina ;  and  of  these  latter,  a  much  larger 
number  than  from  the  still  lower  latitudes  of  South  Carolina,  Alabama, 
Georgia,  and  Mississippi.  The  proportions  being  : 


MORTALITY    IS    YELLOW    FEVER.  201 

From  Northern  latitudes,      .     .     .     32.83  per  1,000 
"     Middle  .     .     .     30.G9 

"     Southern  .     .     .     13.22 

In  regard  to  European  residents,  the  same  preference  for  subjects  from 
northern  latitudes  obtained.  While  those  from  Austria,  Russia,  and  Great 
Britain  suffered  severely,  those  from  France  were  less  subject  to  attack,  and 
those  from  Spain  and  Italy  still  less.  From  this  it  would  appear  that  a  long- 
continued  residence  in  warm  latitudes,  even  when  freed  from  the  causes  that 
produce  yellow  fever,  effects  such  a  modification  in  the  constitution,  as  to 
serve  in  some  degree  to  ward  off  an  attack,  and  that  an  eminent  predispo 
sition  is  found  in  that  condition  of  body,  induced  by  a  long  residence  in  a 
high  latitude.  That  the  chances  of  escape  from  an  attack  of  yellow  fever, 
when  exposed  to  its  influence,  by  a  native  of  South  Carolina  or  Virginia, 
are  greater  than  those  of  a  native  of  Ohio,  New  York,  or  the  New  England 
States,  under  like  circumstances,  appears  to  be  tolerably  well  established. 
Did  the  opportunity  exist  for  obtaining  similar  information  in  regard  to  the 
diseases  which  prevail  in  northern  latitudes,  in  the  more  inclement  season 
of  the  year,  it  would  probably  be  found  that  the  natives  of  warm  latitudes 
suffered  much  more  in  the  process  of  acclimation  than  is  generally  supposed, 
and  that  modifications  of  habit,  equally  important  with  those  already 
noticed,  are  necessary,  in  order  to  enable  the  southern  resident  to  with 
stand  the  depressing  effects  of  cold. 

That  these  alternations  of  temperature  exert  a  powerful  influence  over 
the  human  organization,  and  that  a  continued  residence  either  amid  the 
snows  of  the  frigid  zone,  or  the  burning  heat  of  the  equatorial  region,  pro 
duces  such  modifications  as  to  render  a  sudden  transition  from  the  one  to 
the  other  a  matter  of  extreme  hazard,  cannot  be  questioned.  Not  only  the 
facts  set  forth  in  the  preceding  pages,  but  the  concurrent  testimony  of 


202  INFLUENCE    OF 

nearly  all  accurate  observers,  goes  to  show,  that  independent  of  all  local 
circumstances,  the  heat  of  low  latitudes  is  sufficient  to  induce  a  train  of 
affections  peculiar  to  and  dependent  on  a  warm  climate,  Avhile  cold,  on  the 
contrary,  is  attended  with  those  peculiar  to  northern  regions. 

"  Fever,  dysentery,  liver  disease  in  some  shape,  with  every  variety  of 
bowel  affections,  may  be  regarded  as  the  diseases  of  hot  climates.  Cold,  on 
the  other  hand,  when  inordinate  or  sudden,  arrests  the  subcutaneous  circu 
lation,  retards  secretion  and  colorification,  and  drives  the  blood  from  the 
skin,  which  becomes  rough  to  the  interior,  where  it  circulates  sluggishly  and 
in  large  quantities.  The  natural  effect  of  this  derangement  of  these  im 
portant  functions  is  to  induce  inflammatory  or  sub-inflammatory  affections, 
especially  of  those  parts  which  arc  most  engorged.  Hence,  inflammation  of 
the  mucous  membrane  of  the  air-passages — cough  and  bronchitis — are  espe 
cially  induced  by  sudden  or  extreme  cold."*  An  examination  of  the  causes 
of  death  in  different  latitudes,  as  developed  in  this  report,  will  demonstrate 
how  generally  affections  of  one  or  the  other  of  these  classes  are  amenable  to 
the  influence  of  elevated  and  depressed  temperature,  and  how  important  a 
feature  they  constitute  in  the  medical  history  of  the  countiy.  In  England 
the  winter  months  are  invariably  the  most  fatal,  while  in  the  United 
States  they  are  usually  among  the  most  healthy.  In  regard  to  the  effect 
upon  aged  persons,  the  winter  of  England  and  that  of  the  United  States 
presents  a  fair  parallel. 

A  remarkable  instance  of  the  effect  of  long-continued  cold  upon  the 
human  system  is  found  in  the  case  of  Dr.  Kane  and  his  companions  in  their 
recent  search  in  the  Polar  regions  for  the  ill-fated  expedition  of  Sir  John 
Franklin.  Upon  the  return  of  Dr.  Kane  and  his  party  from  their  residence 
of  three  years  in  a  high  northern  latitude,  they  found  that  the  effect  of 
summer  heat  in  a  northern  climate  was  so  depressing  as  to  produce  extreme 


Dunglison's  Human  Health,  p.  27. 


COLD    AND    WARM    CLIMATES.  203 

nervous  prostration,  and  unfit  them  for  mental  or  corporeal  exertion.  In 
the  case  of  Dr.  Kane,  this  nervous  prostration  was  so  great,  as  absolutely  to 
destroy  all  power  of  physical  endurance,  and  finally  resulted  in  his  death. 

The  effect  of  age  is  important.  In  those  affections  which  are  depend 
ent  upon  an  increased  excitability  of  the  system,  as  in  all  the  diseases  in 
duced  by  warm  climates,  the  middle  period  of  life  is  that  in  which  they 
prove  most  fatal ;  while  those  diseases  which  are  induced  by  a  diminution 
of  this  excitability,  as  in  the  case  of  those  due  exclusively  to  a  cold  climate, 
old  age,  or  an  impaired  vitality,  are  least  favorable  to  recovery. 

The  effect  of  this  diversity  of  climate  and  surrounding  circumstances 
upon  the  relative  prevalence  of  the  one  or  the  other  of  the  diseases  to  which 
each  are  subject,  and  the  compai-ative  duration  of  life,  has  been  fully  recog 
nised  by  those  whose  duty  it  is  to  apply  the  laws  of  mortality,  either 
known  or  supposed,  to  the  operations  of  life  assurance.  Experience  has  de 
monstrated  to  those  companies  having  risks  in  different  countries  or  in 
different  climates  in  the  same  country,  that  the  percentage  of  mortality, 
under  apparently  like  circumstances,  is  greater  in  some  situations  than  in 
others,  and  that  what  might  be  a  profitable  rate  in  one  would  be  a 
losing  rate  in  the  other. 

The  annexed  table,  showing  the  combined  results  of  the  operations  of 
the  order  of  Odd  Fellows  in  the  United  States,  for  ten  years,  commencing 
with  1843,  and  ending  with  1852,  is  highly  pertinent  to  this  subject,  and 
illustrates,  in  the  most  marked  manner,  the  influence  of  locality  upon  health 
and  disease.  This  table  derives  additional  value  from  the  circumstance 
that  the  Odd  Fellows  were  for  the  most  part  like  those  who  seek  assurance 
in  the  middle  period  of  life  :— 


204 


STATISTICS    OF    MORTALITY 


Beneficial 

Number 

Ratio 

Number 

One  death 

State  Grand  Lodges. 

Members. 

Sick. 

Sick. 

Deaths. 

to  each 

Maryland, 

59,131 

13,021 

4.5 

641 

92 

Massachusetts, 

78,711 

9,892 

7.9 

659 

119 

S.  New  York, 

161,712 

28,818 

5.6 

1,733 

93 

N.  New  York,       . 

93,142 

14,662 

6.3 

653 

142 

Pennsylvania, 

204,689 

37,150 

5.5 

1,829 

111 

District  Columbia, 

10,398 

2,458 

5.2 

77 

135 

Delaware, 

7,800 

1,016 

7.3 

61 

127 

Ohio, 

59,673 

9,973 

5.9 

639 

93 

Louisiana, 

9,924 

1,110 

8.6 

211 

47 

New  Jersey, 

42,671 

6,989 

6.1 

322 

132 

Kentucky, 

17,561 

2,197 

7.9 

243 

72 

Virginia, 

31,048 

4,824 

6.4 

336 

92 

Indiana, 

17,981 

2,582 

6.9 

203 

88 

Mississippi,    . 

8,266 

816 

10.1 

89 

92 

Missouri, 

10,988 

1,446 

7.6 

187 

58 

Illinois, 

14,339 

1,613 

8.3 

162 

88 

Texas, 

1,340 

139 

8.2 

34 

39 

Alabama, 

7,469 

725 

10.3 

119 

63 

Connecticut,  . 

37,713 

5,843 

6.4 

273 

138 

Soutb  Carolina, 

13,812 

1,518 

9.0 

128 

107 

Tennessee, 

11,918 

860 

13.3 

93 

128 

Georgia, 

11,768 

1,403 

8.3 

134 

87 

North  Carolina, 

6,710 

645 

9.8 

59 

113 

Maine, 

33,138 

3,543 

9.3 

271 

122 

Rhode  Island, 

9,621 

1,537 

6.2 

78 

123 

New  Hampshire,  . 

14,454 

1,812 

7.9 

120 

120 

Michigan, 

14,341 

2,077 

6.9 

111 

129 

Wisconsin, 

9,099 

625 

11.8 

58 

156 

Vermont, 

4,785 

490 

8.2 

27 

177 

Iowa, 

4,380 

425 

7.9 

36 

121 

1,008,612          160,209  6.3         9,586          105 

This  table  would  have  derived  an  additional  value  if  it  had  contained 
the  ages  at  death,  and  the  occupations  of  the  deceased.    This  latter  enquiry, 


AMONG    ODD    FELLOWS.  205 

whose  importance  is  of  the  highest  value  iu  measuring  the  relative  duration 
of  life,  has  latterly  received  much  attention  at  home  and  abroad.  It  unfor 
tunately  happens,  however,  that  the  European  observations  are  mainly 
confined  to  England  and  Scotland,  and  those  in  this  country  to  the  States 
of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island. 

Mr.  Neison,  the  Actuary  of  the  Medical  Invalid  and  General  Life  Office, 
at  London,  obtained,  after  much  labor,  the  results  of  a  sufficient  number  of 
Friendly  Societies,  whose  province  is  to  provide  for  the  sick,  to  enable  him 
to  institute  a  comparison  into  the  relative  health  of  the  various  occupations 
included  in  the  returns,  and  the  comparative  healthfulncss  of  each  in  town 
and  country  districts.  This  enables  a  comparison  to  be  made  between  the 
returns  of  the  occupations,  as  found  in  the  Massachusetts  reports,  and  those 
of  similar  occupations  in  England.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  no 
extensive  means  of  comparison  with  the  records  of  Massachusetts,  is  to  be 
found  at  home,  the  only  State  which  has  noted  the  occupations  of  the 
deceased  being  the  neighboring  one  of  Rhode  Island,  and  the  whole 
number  of  occupations  so  noted  being  confined  to  less  than  two  hundred 
deaths. 

The  results  of  Mr.  Neison's  investigations  disclosed  the  fact,  that  not 
withstanding  the  circumstances  which  at  the  first  view  might  be  supposed 
to  exercise  a  very  large  influence  in  abridging  life,  the  members  of  Friendly 
Societies  were  longer  lived  than  the  average  residents  of  the  same  districts 
of  similar  ages,  although  a  large  number  of  these  latter  were  among  the 
affluent  classes  of  society,  who  from  their  greater  comforts  and  limited 
exposure,  were  supposed  to  present  a  higher  average  age  at  death  than 
their  more  humble  neighbors. 

The  data  collected  from  the  Friendly  Societies  was  carefully  arranged 
in  three  classes,  dependent  upon  the  residence  of  the  members,  viz.,  town, 
city  and  country,  in  order  to  test  the  effect  of  locality  upon  the  life  of 


20G  STATISTICS    OF    MORTALITY 

persons  pursuing"_the  same  occupation  under  the  different  circumstances  of 
town  and  country  life.  These  were  grouped  together,  and  a  table  of  the 
expectation  of  life,  formed  from  the  results,  and  contrasted  with  the  expec 
tation  of  life  among  the  males  in  England  and  Wales  for  the  same  periods. 
This  table,  which  is  given  below,  shows  that  at  each  age  the  expectation  of 
life  is  invariably  in  favor  of  the  members  of  the  Friendly  Societies,  and 
speaks  in  very  encouraging  language  to  those  whose  province  it  is  to  toil  at 
laborious  and  frequently  dangerous  occupations  :— 

EXPECTATION  IN  Difference  in  Favor  of  tho  Three  Districts. 


Age. 

i  

Three  Districts. 

England  and  Wales. 

20 

43.77 

40.69 

30 

36.00 

34.09 

40 

29.33 

27.47 

50 

22.19 

20.84 

60 

15.69 

14.58 

70 

10.20 

9.21 

In  Years.  Per  Cent. 

3.08  7.57 

2.50  7.34 

1.85  6.75 

1.34  6.45 

1.10  7.60 

0.98  10.72 


These  results,  so  far  showing  that  the  circumstances  in  which  the 
laborious  classes  are  placed  limit  their  duration  of  life,  absolutely 
exhibits  a  prolongation  of  it  beyond  what  the  most  favorable  life  tables, 
selected  from  the  best  classes  of  society,  have  ventured  to  go,  and  excited 
much  surprise  among  those  who  were  by  no  means  ignorant  on  this 
subject. 

But  although  the  average  was  more  favorable  to  life  than  that  of  the 
whole  population,  yet  a  large  difference  was  found  to  obtain  in  the  relative 
healthfulness  of  different  occupations,  as  will  be  made  manifest  by  the 
following  table :— 


AMONG    MEMBEKS    OF    FHIENDLY    SOCIETIES. 


Ages. 

Rural,  Town, 
and  City  Districts. 
G. 

Clerks. 
J,No.'2. 

Plumbers, 
Painters,  and 
Glaziers. 
J,  No.  3. 

Bakers. 
J,  No.  4. 

Miners. 
J,  No.  6. 

20 

43.77 

31.83 

36.90 

40.02 

40.67 

30 

36.60 

27.57 

30.50 

32.35 

33.15 

40 

29.33 

21.85 

24.30 

24.47 

24.92 

50 

22.19 

16.04 

17.09 

19.09 

17.53 

60 

15.69 

12.42 

12.16 

14.06 

11.85 

From  this  it  appears  that  the  expectation  of  life  at  twenty  years  for 
all  trades  included  in  the  Friendly  Societies,  is  43.77  years;  for  miners 
alone,  40.67  years;  for  bakers,  40  years;  for  painters,  plumbers  and  glaziers, 
36.90  years  ;  and  for  clerks,  the  low  average  of  31.83  years. 

"The  very  remarkable  difference,"  adds  Mr.  Ncison,  "between  the 
above  employments  and  the  general  results,  cannot  fail  to  occasion  some 
surprise ;  and  at  the  same  time  conclusively  prove,  that  any  district  con 
taining  a  majority  of  the  above,  or  other  equally  unhealthy  employments, 
must  show  a  very  reduced  average  value  of  life  for  the  district,  independent 
of  the  local  situation  itself  on  health."* 

The  Massachusetts  returns  not  only  embrace  those  usually  included 
in  Friendly  Societies  abroad  or  at  home,  but  also  those  on  the  one  hand 
in  the  latter  classes  whose  means  are  abundant  and  exposure  little  ;  and  on 
the  other,  who  derive  their  sustenance  from  the  hand  of  charity. 

The  following  table  exhibits  the  most  common  occupations  of  those 
who  have  died  in  Massachusetts  during  eleven  years  and  eight  months, 
ending  on  the  last  day  of  December,  1854,  together  with  the  average  age 
that  has  been  attained  by  the  deceased,  in  each  of  the  selected  occupa 
tions  : — 

Journal  London  Statistical  Society,  vol.  8,  p.  318. 


208 


RATIO    OF    MORTALITY   IN 


No. 

Age. 

No. 

Age. 

9698     Agriculturists, 

47.16 

359    Masons,   . 

41.61 

29     Artists, 

40.10 

408     Mechanics,  . 

42.88 

11     EaTik  Officers, 

61.72 

816     Merchants, 

52.06 

688     Blacksmiths, 

51.41 

69     Millers, 

61.58 

124    Butchers, 

49.63 

50     Musicians, 

40.46 

198     Cabinetmakers,    . 

47.04 

260     Operatives,  . 

34.19 

1498     Carpenters, 

49.33 

368     Painters, 

42.10 

234     Clergymen,  . 

56.61 

356     Paupers, 

65.19 

437    Clerks,     . 

33.73 

322     Physicians,       . 

55.25 

286     Coopers, 

58.84 

129     Printers, 

36.55 

263    Gentlemen,      . 

63.83 

80    Kopemakers,   . 

55.95 

21     Glass  Blowers, 

39.86 

2299     Seamen, 

45.99 

111     Hatters, 

54.90 

238     Shipwrights,    . 

56.48 

7     Judges  and  Justices, 

67.19 

2436     Shoemakers, 

43.66 

92     Jewelers, 

42.56 

194     Stonecutters,    . 

43.66 

6410     Laborers, 

44.57 

287    Tailors, 

42.51 

171    Lawyers, 

56.60 

175    Tanners  and  Curriers, 

47.37 

363     Machinists, 

37.63 

648     Traders, 

46.53 

313     Manufacturers, 

44.30 

95    Weavers, 

46.83 

"  Of  these  33,580  individuals  the  combined  ages  amounted  to 

1,724,031 

years,  or  51.34  years  to  each 

man. 

"  A  portion  of  the  females  who  died  during  the  same  time,  admit  of  the 

following  classification  :— 

Domestics, 

43.96 

Seamstresses, 

41.83 

Dressmakers, 

32.36 

Shoebinders,    . 

45.59 

Housekeepers,    . 

51.15 

Straw-braiders,  . 

35.09 

Milliners, 

35.53 

Tailoresses, 

40.63 

Nurses,       .... 

54.61 

Teachers,    .... 

28.70 

Operatives, 

27.69 

"  The  aggregate  ages  of  the  2,37G  females  thus  given,  amounted  to 
109,724,  and  the  general  average  of  the  whole  gives  50.39  years  to  each 
individual. 


DIFFERENT    OCCUPATIONS.  209 

The  Registrar  of  the  city  of  Boston  has  furnished  the  following  table 

of  ages  of  TOGjnen,  of  the  principal  professions  and  trades,  who  died  in 
1855,  and  whose  ages  were  reported  : — 

No.         Profession  or  Occupation.                         Ages  Ranging  Aggregate  Average 

from  Ages.  Ages. 

305            Laborers,       .        .        .        16  to  88  12,292  40.30 

69            Mariners,                                 1C  "  79  2,663  38.59 

45            Clerks,           .        .        .        1C  "  74  1,484  32.98 

35            Tailors,      .                             20  "  90  1,368  39.08 

32             Merchants,    .                           26  "  91  1,882  58.81 

32  Traders,     .        .        .            24  "  79  1,590  49.68 

33  Carpenters,    .        .        .        18  "  87  1,510  45.76 
22            Painters,    .                 .            19  "  76  888  40. 3G 
20            Shoemakers,          .        .        21  "  55  687  34.35 
15            Teamsters,          .        .            22  "  73  516  34.40 
12            Gentlemen,            .                 28  "  83  718  59.83 
11            Printers,    .                 .            20  "  68  434  39.45 
10            Masons,         .        .        .        25  "  71  402  40.20 

9            Machinists,        .                    23  "  46  304  33.77 

8            Bakers,          .        .        .        26  "  60  309  38.62 

8            Farmers,            .                    35  "  71  457  57.12 

7            Blacksmiths,          .        .        20  "  58  245  35.00 

C            Ship  Carpenters,        .            30  "  70  307  51.16 

5            Physicians,            .        .        25  "  72  249  49.80 

5            Clergymen,        .        .            36  "  73  269  53.80 

4            Coopers,        .        .        .        26  "  65  162  40.50 

4            Curriers,     .                             19  "  40  114  28.50 

4  Engineers,    .        .        .        27  "  54  183  45.75 

5  Lawyers,            .                     27  "  91  301  60.20 

706                 Totals,     .        .        .  29,334  41.55 

There  is  no  absolute  means  of  separating  those  who  resided  in  town 
from  those  who  lived  in  the  country,  but  it  is  presumed  that  the  agricul 
turists  were  exclusively  residents  of  the  country ;  while  it  is  probable  that 
26 


210  EFFECT    OF    OCCUPATION 

the  larger  part  of  those  classed  under  the  heads  of  mechanics  and  laborers 
dwelt  in  towns  of  greater  or  less  size.  The  effect  of  locality,  upon  this  pre 
sumption,  is  made  strikingly  manifest  in  the  superior  value  of  life  possessed 
by  the  agriculturist  over  that  of  the  two  classes  of  laborers  who  reside  in 
town,  being  eighteen  years  longer  in  duration  than  that  of  the  mechanic, 
and  nearly  twenty  years  beyond  that  of  the  laborer. 

These  observations  correspond  somewhat  with  those  of  Mr.  Neison's, 
which  value  the  probabilities  of  the  life  of  the  baker  below  the  average  of 
mechanics,  the  life  of  the  painter  still  lower,  and  that  of  the  clerk  lowest 
of  all  the  occupations.  They  cannot  be  pursued  further,  because  Mr.  Neison 
has  not  given  the  probabilities  of  life  incident  to  the  other  trades  that  came 
under  his  inspection,  but  they  are  sufficient  to  show  that  under  like  circum 
stances  the  relative  probabilities  of  life,  as  compared  the  one  with  the  other, 
do  not  differ  materially  in  England  and  Massachusetts. 

This  classification  shows  a  very  marked  difference  in  the  average  age 
at  death  of  the  different  mechanic  arts,  besides  those  just  alluded  to.  Tan 
ners  and  curriers,  butchers  and  carpenters,  stand  high  upon  the  list ;  while 
machinists,  and  stonecutters,  and  printers,  take  a  low  stand.  This  table  is 
very  valuable  so  far  as  it  goes,  but  it  fails  to  enumerate  many  occupations 
more  unhealthy  than  those  already  named,  as  the  white  lead  manufacturer, 
the  friction-matchmaker,  and  the  daguerreotypist. 

There  are  obvious  reasons,  growing  out  of  the  circumstances  incident 
to  each  pursuit,  why  one  should  be  more  favorable  to  longevity  than  another ; 
and  were  the  diseases  in  each  case  carefully  noted,  it  would  lead  to  very 
satisfactory  and  practical  results. 

In  1819,  the  English  Government  selected  Mr.  Finlaison,  an  eminent 
mathematician  and  vital  statistician,  to  determine  the  law  of  mortality,  and 
establish  the  value  of  the  government  annuities,  and  tontine  schemes. 
Assisted  by  a  large  number  of  competent  clerks,  and  aided  by  access  to  the 


IN    EKltOI'E    AND    AME1UCA.  211 

records  of  the  names  of  those  who  for  the  space  of  a  century  had  been 
upon  the  registers,  as  the  recipients  of  annuities,  or  the  nominees  in  tontines, 
and  also  provided  with  unlimited  means  to  defray  any  expenditure  required 
in  the  prosecution  of  his  inquiries,  he  labored  assiduously  at  his  task,  and  at 
the  expiration  of  ten  years  made  a  final  report  to  the  Lords  of  the  Treasury, 
which  comprised  in  a  large  number  of  tables  the  rates  of  mortality,  and 
the  value  of  a  great  number  of  different  classes  of  annuities  averaged  for 
single  and  more  lives. 

These  tables,  thus  laboriously  wrought  out  with  consummate  skill  and 
great  care,  are  regarded  as  the  true  exponent  of  the  expectation  of  life  in 
the  class  covered  by  his  inquiries,  and  have  always  commanded  the  fullest 
confidence. 

From  a  comparison  of  the  data  furnished  by  them,  as  well  as  that  col 
lected  by  the  various  assurance  companies,  it  appeared  that  the  value  of  life 
among  the  government  annuitants,  and  the  insurers  of  lives  in  the  different 
assurance  companies,  which  represented  the  affluent  and  superior  classes, 
was  less,  as  has  already  been  observed,  than  among  the  humbler  classes, 
found  among  the  members  of  Friendly  Societies. 

Dr.  Guy,  of  King's  College  Hospital,  from  the  facts  afforded  him  by 
the  works  on  peerage  and  baronetage,  made  a  classification  of  the  deaths 
which  had  occurred  among  the  members  of  noble  families,  above  twenty 
years  of  age,  for  a  long  period  of  years. 

The  number  of  deaths  thus  collated  amount  to  2291,  of  which  li>89 
were  derived  from  the  peerage,  and  the  remainder  from  the  baronetage. 
From  these  facts  Mr.  Neison  formed  a  life  table,  showing  the  expectation  of 
life  in  the  males  of  the  peerage  and  baronetage. 

The  expectation  of  life,  as  thus  deduced,  together  with  the  results 
obtained  by  Mr.  Finlaison,  on  English  annuitants,  the  experience  of  several 


212  EXPECTATION    OF   LIFE 

assurance  companies,   Milne's  and  Farr's  tables,   and  that  of  the  French 
annuitants,  are  placed  side  by  side  in  the  accompanying  table  :— 

Peerage  English       Sweden  <t  French 

Age.  and          England          Ann.  Finland,       Carlisle,       Equitable,     Amicable,        Ann. 

Bart.       (Mr.  Farr.)    (Finlaison.)      (Milne.)        (Milne.)       (Morgan.)    (Galloway)    (Dejiar.) 


20 

38 

40 

3S 

39 

41 

42 

40 

25 

35 

36 

36 

35 

38 

38 

38 

37 

30 

31 

33 

33 

32 

34 

34 

34 

34 

35 

27 

30 

30 

28 

31 

31 

30 

31 

40 

24 

27 

27 

25 

28 

27 

26 

27 

45 

21 

23 

24 

21 

24 

24 

22 

24 

50 

18 

20 

20 

18 

21 

20 

19 

20 

55 

15 

17 

17 

15 

18 

17 

16 

17 

60 

13 

14 

14 

12 

14 

14 

13 

14 

C5 

10 

11 

12 

10 

12 

11 

10 

11 

70 

8 

8 

9 

7 

9 

9 

8 

9 

75 

C 

6 

7 

5 

7 

7 

6 

G 

80 

6 

5 

5 

4 

5 

5 

5 

5 

85 

4 

4 

3 

3 

4 

3 

4 

3 

90 

3 

3 

2 

3 

3 

3 

3 

2 

1)5 

2 

2 

. 

2 

3 

. 

. 

. 

100 

1 

f 

• 

• 

. 

. 

. 

These  columns  certainly  do  not  exhibit  as  high  an  expectation  of  life, 
cither  among  the  members  of  the  families  of  the  peerage  and  baronetage, 
or  the  English  annuitants,  as  the  average  of  English  life  shown  in  the 
column  based  upon  Mr.  Farr's  results,  and  all  of  these  fall  below  that  of 
Mr.  Neison's,  based  upon  the  facts  developed  by  the  returns  of  the  Friendly 
Societies. 

A  comparison  of  the  laboring  and  more  independent  classes  in  the 
United  States,  as  developed  by  the  Massachusetts  returns,  do  not  exhibit 
the  same  favorable  results  for  the  former,  as  are  made  manifest  by  the  English 
tables.  On  the  contrary,  the  average  age  at  death  of  those  engaged  in 
mechanical  pursuits  is  lower  than  the  average  age  of  the  better  classes. 


AMONG    DIFFERENT    CLASSES.  213 

The  average  age  of  laborers  is  44.80  years,  and  that  of  mechanics  as  a 
class  46  years,  while  with  merchants,  the  average  age  is  46.30  years,  with 
professional  men  49.03  years,  and  with  public  men  50.32  years.  Among 
individual  pursuits,  those  of  the  clergymen,  advocates  and  medical  men, 
rank  higher  than  either  of  the  trades,  with  the  exception  of  the  cooper  and 
the  shipwright,  and  the  retired  gentleman  attains  to  an  age  superior  to 
them  all,  averaging  68.29  years. 

There  is  a  very  wide  difference  between  the  relative  chances  of  life 
enjoyed  by  the  different  classes  in  Massachusetts  and  England,  which  must 
arise  either  from  the  higher  expectation  of  life  among  the  better  class 
here,  as  compared  with  the  same  class  in  England,  or  a  lower  expectation 
among  the  laboring  class  here,  as  compared  with  the  same  class  there. 

In  applying  the  principles  of  the  laws  of  mortality  to  life  assurance,  it 
must  be  taken  into  consideration,  that  while  a  knowledge  of  their  rates 
at  the  extreme  periods  of  life  is  necessary,  yet  at  the  same  time  those  cir 
cumstances  which  affect  its  duration  after  the  first  period  has  passed,  and 
extreme  age  has  not  been  attained,  are  of  more  immediate  and  practical 
importance,  because  it  is  precisely  in  this  period  of  life  that  most  appli 
cants  for  assurance  present  themselves,  and  over  which  most  of  the  policies, 
whose  duration  is  limited  by  a  fixed  number  of  years  extend.  It  may 
thus  happen  that  the  proportionate  mortality  of  one  latitude  may  not 
exceed  that  of  another,  or  may  even  fall  below  ;  and  yet  the  probabilities 
of  life  at  the  ages  usually  covered  by  life  assurance  may  be  much  less. 
Thus,  if  the  prevailing  disease  be  dysentery  or  scarlatina,  its  heaviest 
demand  will  be  made  upon  the  early  periods  of  life ;  if  consumption  and 
scrofula,  it  will  fall  with  greatest  force  upon  the  period  between  20  and  30 
years  ;  and  if  dropsy,  apoplexy,  or  paralysis,  it  will  fall  with  greatest 
force  upon  advanced  life. 

hi  order,    therefore,    to   determine  with   any  degree  of  accuracy  the 


214  CONCLUSION. 

effect  of  locality  upon  the  duration  of  life,  a  knowledge  of  the  diseases 
that  terminate  it  is  as  necessary  as  an  exact  account  of  the  number  who 
have  died,  and  the  ages  at  which  death  took  place.  The  tables  accom 
panying  this  report  will,  it  is  hoped,  enable  these  comparisons  to  be  insti 
tuted  with  a  reasonable  approximation  to  correct  results. 


WM.    0.    BRYANT    i    CO.,    riUNTEKS,    CORNER    NASSAU    AND    LIBERTY    STREETS,    N.    V. 


INDEX. 


PAGE 

Acclimation,          .         .         .         .  .171 

"                190 

Dr.  La  Roche  on       .  .197 

Life,  cost  of           .         .  199 

"             Dr.  Nott  on       .         .  .108 

A<TQ  of  parents,  effect  on  sexes  at  births,         70 

Ages  of  living  in  each  State,  .         .  .     181 

'•     at  marriage  in  Massachusetts,     .  92 

"          "    Kentucky,       .  .93 

"    Belgium,              .  93 

"     "         "          "    North  and  South,  .       90 

Aged  class  of  population,   ...  33 

American  summer,  heat  of     .          .  .130 

"             "        source  of  disease,  .  130 

Army  mortality  in  British  service,  .  .     131 

"           "           "  United  States,         .  133 

"     statistics  not  applicable  to  civil  life,     134 

Atlantic  plain,  features  of       .          .  .137 

Average  age  of  English  population,     .  32 

"            "     "  American       "  .       32 

"     "  at  death,             .          .  183 

Balfour,   Dr.,   on   table  of  mortality   in 
Eastern  British  service,       .         .         .131 

Births,  census  returns  of  45 

"       disparity  in          ....       45 
"       why  greater  in  some  places  than 

others,        .          .         .          .  45 


Births,  more  abundant  in    new  than  old 

countries,       ....  45 

"       affected  by  tho  seasons,             .  41) 

"       Milne  on              ....  48 

"       in  Massachusetts,     ...  58 

"       in  Rhode  Island,         ...  59 

"       in  New  Jersey,        ...  03 

"       in  Connecticut,            ...  03 

"       in  Kentucky,            .          .          .  04 

Born  dead,  proportion  of        .          .          .77 
"        "              "         in  Kentucky,  78 
"        "             "         in  Massachusetts,  77 
"        "             "         in  European  coun 
tries,          79 

Boston,  births  in        ....  55 

"            "      of  natives  and  foreigners,  50 

"            "      in  different  wards,    .          .  50 

"            "      mortality  in           .          .  104 

Bowditch,  Dr.,  on  consumption  in  Massa 
chusetts,        .         .                  .  178 

California,  mortality  .          .          .         .  100 

Carpenter  on  sexes  at  birth,    .         .  70 
Carnival,  effect  of  on  season  of  marriage 

in  France,          .          .         .          .         .91 

Chadwick  on  population  in  United  States,  31 

"   average  age  of  living,     .  32 

Chickering  on  Emigration,     ...  43 


11 


INDEX. 


PAGE 

Census  returns  of  births,     .         .         .  103 
"              "   •    "   marriages,           .  .103 
"              "        "  deaths,            .         .  107 
Climate  of  the  great  lake  region,    .  .144 
"         "    mountain              "               .  144 
"   seashore  and  inland,     .  .     194 
"         Dr.  Johnson  on               .          .  494 
Claik,  Dr.,  on  still-born,          .          .  .81 
Conception  in  Kentucky,    ...  83 
"         effect  of  seasons  on          .  .       83 
"         Milne  on            ...  84 
in  Sweden  and  France,  .       85 
Connecticut,  births  in          ...  G3 
Consumption,  season  most  fatal,       .  .1*70 
"             in  Massachusetts,  .         .  178 
"             in  Kentucky,     .         .  .177 
"             Dr.  Bowditch  on   .         .  178 
"              per  cent,   of,  in   Massachu 
setts  and  Kentucky,  .     180 
Curtis,  Dr.,  on  sexes  at  birth,      .         .  07 

Deaths,  census  returns  of       ...     107 
"         in  different  States,          .         .         107 
number  of  in  United  States,       .     107 
proportion  of  sexes,         .          .          108 
"         in  Massachusetts,     .         .          .     108 
"         in  New  Hampshire,    .         .  108 

per  cent,  at  different  ages,          .     109 
excess  of  males  in  early  life,  110 

proportion  to  living,  .          .110 

male  and  female  in  Massachu 
setts,         .         .         .         .111 
Dist.  of  Columbia,    111 
Wurtemberg,      .     Ill 
affected  by  migration,    .         .         113 
in  each  season,          .         .         .151 
"         different  States,     .         .  151 

Dependent  classes,         .         .         .         .33 
Diseases,  classification  of    .         .  172 

of  warm  climates,     .         .         .     202 
"          of  cold          "  .          .         202 

per  cent,  of,  in  different  States,       175 
localities,     179 
Drake,  Dr.,  on  Mississippi  Valley,        .  19 


PAGE 

Dwellings,  number  of  in  Europe,    .         .  150 

"              "         "     in  United  States,  155 

Effect  of  locality  on  mortality,     .         .  104 

"     "  geological  formation  on  health,  141 

Emigration,  per  cent,  in  United  States,    .  39 

"  "  "  "  different  States,  39 
"  "  European  countries,  41 

"  Irish  to  America,  .  .  52 

Emigrants,  condition  of  ...  41 

"         now  and  heretofore,  .          .  43 

"  in  town  and  country,  .  .  40 

Emigrant  office,  English,  report  of  •  53 

European  States,  births  in  .  .  65 

Fecundity,  laws  of         .         .          .          .48 

Females,   deaths  among     .         .         .  108 

"              "       in  Massachusetts,           .  110 

"              "       in  Dist.  of  Columbia,  110 

"             "       in  Wurtemberg,        .  Ill 

"       in  excess  in  country,      .  115 

Female  mortality  in  Massachusetts,     .  125 

"  "          in  Maryland,       .         .125 

"             "          in  England,     .         .  125 

Fever,  a  disease  of  middle  life,        .          •  179 

"      per  cent,  of,  in  Massachusetts  and 

Kentucky,            .          .          .  180 

Finlaison  on  English  Annuitants,         .  180 

Gotha   Bank    do   not    insure    pregnant 

women,         .         .         .         .         .  122 

Geology  of  the  Atlantic  plain  and  slope,  137 

of  Valley  of  Mississippi,      .         .  140 

Gulf  stream,  effect  of          .  .147 

Guy,  Dr.,  on  lives  of  English  peerage,     .  211 

Uofacker  on  sexes  at  birth,  .  .  70 
Hopfs'  statistics  of  male  and  female 

mortality, 122 

Heat  of  American  summer  a  source  of 

disease,         .... 


Ireland,  marriages  in 

proportion  of  births. 


135 

50 
50 


IXDKX. 


Ill 


PAGE 

Ireland,  Thorn's  statistics        ...  53 

Irish  condition  of  in  Ireland  and  America,  52 

Infantile  mortality,         ....  57 

"             "             excess  of                .  184 

"              "              census  returns,            .  18-1 

"              "              want  of  correctness  in,  184 

Kentucky,  births  in    ....  G4 
"         still-born  in            ...  81 
conception  in     ...  83 
"         months  most  prolific  in            .  83 
and  Montpellier  correspondence,   86 
Kennedy's  table  of  male  and  female  mor 
tality,        125 

Kane,  Dr.,  effect  of  cold  climate  on,     .  203 

Life-table,  English     ....  13 

"     insurance   experience   in    male  and 

female  mortality,  .  .  .122 
Local  influences,  effect  of  .  .  .  129 
Laws  of  mortality  not  alike  in  England 

and  America,  .  .  .  .  .153 
Louisiana,  Dr.  Barton  on  .  .  .  1C8 
Locality,  effect  of  on  mortality,  .  .  178 

Mississippi  Valley,         .         .         .         .19 

Mountain  ranges>       ....  20 

Mortality  census,  .          .          .          .10 

Mortality  returns,       .         .         .         .  25 

"         of  Europe,      .         .         .         .25 

"         per  cent,  of         .         ,  25 

Milne  on  Conception,     ....  48 

Massachusetts,  reports  of  births,          .  50 

Male  and  female,  proportions  of  in  the 

United  States,      .         .         .         .  75 
Massachusetts  and  Sweden,  correspond 
ence  between 80 

Marriages,  in  different  months     .          .  88 

"         Massachusetts,      ...  83 

"         Kentucky,         ...  89 

"         Shattuck  on          ...  90 

"          in  different  States,     .          .  103 

"         census  returns  of  .          .         .  103 

"         proportion  of,  in  different  States  103 

Moisture,  sources  of       ....  147 


Moisture   in    Europe    and   American  cli 
mates,         ....  147 
Mortality  in  different  States,       .          .  107 
of  the  sexes  in  Massachusetts,  .  121 
"         "         "         at  different  ages,  121 
correspondence  between  Sweden 

and  Massachusetts,      .         .128 

among  British  troops,            .  131 
maximum  and  minimum  periods 

of 158 

in  Massachusetts,          .          .  158 

in  Kentucky,  .         .         .158 

in  Rhode  Island,           .          .  159 

"         in  California,  .          .          .100 

in  Northern  and  Southern  cities,  104 

"         in  Southern  States,  Dr.  Nott  on  1 70 

Mourgue  on  marriages  in  France,    .         .  01 

New  Jersey,  births  in  .         .         .         .  63 
New  Orleans,  Dr.  Simonds  on  the  mor 
tality  of       .         .         .  1C5 
"              Dr.  Barton          "         "      .  108 
Nott,  Dr.,  on  mortality  of  Southern  States  170 
Neison  on  effect  of  occupation,    .         .  205 
"      on  select  lives     ....  205 


Occupation,  effect  on  life     . 

in  other  countries, 
"  in  England,      . 

Deaths  in  each 
Odd  Fellows,  table  of  mortality  ainonj; 

Population  of  United  States, 
"         ages  of     . 

distribution  of 
"         ratios  of  each  age 

O 

origin  of       ... 

productive  capacity  of 
Probabilities  of  life, 
Productive  classes, 
Prussian  Government's  providence, 
Proportion  of  sexes  at  birth, 


IV 


INDEX. 


PAGE 

Per  cent,  of  mortality  in  the  chief  cities 

of  the  United  States,           .          .          .  104 

Quetelet  on  male  and  female  deaths,  .  117 

"          the    inoitality    of  the    sexes   at 

different  ages,       .         .         .121 

Registration  among  the  ancients          .  10 

"            in  Geneva,  Switzerland,         .  11 

"           in  England,     .          .          .  12 

"           in  United  States,           .          .  12 

"           in  Massachusetts,       .          .  12 

"  in  New  Jersey,     .         .          .13 

"           in  Connecticut,         .         .  13 

"          in  Rhode  Island,           .         .  13 

"           in  Kentucky,    ...  13 

"  in  Virginia,          .          .          .13 

11           in  South  Carolina,    .         .  13 

Rhode  Island,  births  in           ...  59 

Rate  of  mortality  in  different  countries,  132 

"              "          in  U.  S.  Army,            .  133 

States,  areas  of  ....  19 
"  per  cent,  of  area,  .  .  .19 

"  ratio  of 19 

Sexes,  proportion  of  at  birth,            .         .  07 

"             "         in  Massachusetts,      .  08 

"              "          in  Providence,       .          .  71 

"              "         in  Europe,         .          .  70 

"              "         in  Kentucky,        .         .  72 

"              "         in  Virginia,      .          .  72 

"             "         in  Charleston,  S.  C.      .  73 

Sadler  on  sexes  at  birth,     ...  70 

Still-born,  properties  of  .         .         ,77 

Seasons,  effect  on  conception  in  Kentucky,  83 

Sutton,  Dr.,  on  conception  in  Kentucky,  83 

Sweden,  table  of  conception  in     .          .  85 

Shattuck  on  New  England  marriages,      .  90 

Sardinia,  returns  of  males  and  females,  118 

returns  of  male  and  female  deaths 

in  town  and  country,   .          .  120 


I'AGE 

Sutton's  table   of    mortality  of  sexes   in 

Kentucky 125 

Seasons  in  the  United  States,      .         .  135 

influence  of  .         .         .151 

deaths  in  each       .          .          .  11 

Summer  mortality  in  the  United  States,  152 

Sanger,  Dr.,  on  mortality  of  California,     .  100 

Simonds  on  the  mortality  of  New  Orleans,  100 

Southwestern  mortality          .         .         .  170 

Southern  mortality  greatest  in  middle  life,  180 

in  infancy  and  old  age,  180 

Summer  mortality  in  United  States,        .  202 

Tucker  on  probabilities  of  life,          .          .  20 

"  on  mortality  in  the  United  Stales,  20 

Thorn's  Irish  statistics,  ...  53 

Tripe  on  still-born,  ....  80 

Table  of  mortality  among  British  troops,  131 

"     "         "         in   U.  S.  Army,          .  133 

Temperature,  range  of  in  the  U.  States,  192 

sea  and  inland,        .         .  192 

Trade  wind,  its  influence,          .         .  147 

Town  and  Country  mortality  in  England 

and  America,  ....  154 
Table  of  per  cent,  of  living  of  each  age 

in  the  various  States,       .          .         .  181 

United  States  territorial  limits,       .         .  18 

great  divisions,       .         .  19 

"  growth  of          .          .         .23 

natural  divisions  of        .  137 

proportion     of     town    and 

country  population     .  155 

Virginia,  births  in  04 

still-born  in          .          .         .  81 

Value  of  European  lives,  table  of    .          .  200 

Wargentin  on  still-born,         .          .          .81 

Winds  in  United  States,    .          .         .  135 

Winter,  mortality  in  Europe            .         .  135 

"              "           in  England,    .         .  202 


NEW    YOKK: 

WM.     C.     BRYANT    it    CO.,    PRINTERS,    41     NASSAU    STREET,    CORNER    OF    LIBERTY. 

1857. 


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